Will Go Down In Cinema History As A Brilliant Hitchcockian Classic

Rating: 7/10 (21 July 2004)

*-Catch it on TV **-Worth a Rental ***-Buy it Used/On Sale ****-Buy it New/Top Dollar *****-Worthy of a Blind Buy
The Sixth Sense was M. Night Shyamalan's first masterpiece. For the two people who have yet to see this film I will clue you in on what it is about. The Sixth Sense is a supernatural thriller about a child psychologist named Malcolm Crowe (played by Bruce Willis) who discovers that he made a mistake with a former patient named Vincent. Enter Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), a troubled young boy with remarkable similarities to Vincent. Malcome makes it a personal mission to help Cole so that he can feel better about his former patient. By the way, Cole's problem is that he can see dead people.

There are very few ways that this film could have been better. However, one way to make it better has nothing to do with the film itself. If the promos for the film hadn't shown Haley Joel Osment saying the famous phrase, "I see dead people" over and over again than the film would have been much more surprising. Image the surprise in learning that the reason that Cole is so messed up is because he is haunted by ghosts. Not that it needed to be anymore surprising. The big twist at the end has been regarded as both brilliant and ridiculous for the past five years. I am one of the many who believe it to be brilliant. After seeing it for the first time you will be blown away. The ending is not the only reason to see the film.
Bruce Willis strayed away from his traditional action hero roles when he starred in this film. It was all around a different character for him and he nailed it. Willis makes Malcome Crowe come alive and conveys his emotions easily in the film. Haley Joel Osment was great as Cole Sear. I am not quite sure if he was good enough to merit a nomination for best supporting actor though. His constant whispering got slightly annoying but was necessary considering the plot.
M. Night Shyamalan's screenwriting and direction in The Sixth Sense is nothing short of incredible. The pacing was slow and it added to the tension Night so brilliantly created. A lot of people find Night's style boring and difficult to watch (especially in his later films). I love the slow development of the story and characters and increased "creepiness." James Newton Howard was the film's composer. His music fits the film perfectly and makes it even more suspenseful. M. Night Shyamalan gave himself a name with The Sixth Sense and raised the bar for all future supernatural thrillers. The Sixth Sense is a ***** film and, I say this a lot, but if I believed in organizing a list of my favorite films than needless to say this would be pretty high up.