Very cleverly-conceived movie (contains spoilers)

Rating: 9/10 (6 July 2003)

Alejandro Amenábar did a superb job on the screenplay for this movie. Also, the set, casting and acting were near-perfect.
Many people have complained how this film was a "rip-off" of the Sixth Sense, but I disagree. For a start, the screenplay for The Others was apparently written before The Sixth Sense even came out; and secondly, the twist contained in The Others was superior.
The Sixth Sense for me contained only one point of shocking realisation -- only one critical moment where everything you saw previously got turned on its head.
The Others, however, contained a whole series of such moments. For instance, the first minor revelation came when the whole attitude of Mrs Mills changed -- it was at this point that I became very suspicious of the three servants. Such suspicions were confirmed when I heard the servants' comments about the gravestones and the difficulty of "convincing" the children and their mother.
The second revelation came when the two children escaped the house and Anne saw the names on the three gravestones. Only half of the twist registered with me at this point.
The third revelation appeared when Grace meets up with "The Others" -- and then I finally realised that the true nature of Grace, her children, and the three servants was indeed all the same.
But the final revelation was the one that completely turned everything on its head. It took me a couple of seconds after Grace's confrontation with
"The Others" before the true gravity of this astounding twist registered with me.
Overall, The Others is a film that I enjoyed thoroughly. It does not rely upon your stereotypical Hollywood special effects to cause fear, but rather it relies upon the psychological impact that it creates with its incredibly sombre, haunted atmosphere. It is a movie which must be watched at least twice so that you can go back and see how the whole twist fits in flawlessly with the storyline.
I give this film 9/10.