Good stuff, done well.

Rating: Null/10 (1 December 1999)

Hollywood's been getting better at producing more intelligent horror/thriller films of late. I'm not sure what's going on; perhaps it's something they're putting in the bottled water. Anyway - "The Sixth Sense" is a lovely example of what a "taught psychological thriller" should be all about. Shyamalan's opus about a little boy and his counsellor hits exactly all the right buttons, and does so whilst cranking up the tension to an almost unbearable level.
It is not overly gory, it does not rely on hugely fantastic special effects to stun and amaze the audience, neither does it resort to clichÃ©d shock tactics. It is a great example of a good idea for a good film cleverly executed. The performances are good by all, but a special mention must go to Haley Joel Osment who plays a difficult and demanding role with the ability and talent of an actor five times his age. Toni Collette is also superb as his troubled mother, and it is very refreshing to see her tackling such a diverse range of roles (including such films as "Muriel's Wedding", "Emma" and "Velvet Goldmine").
I will confess that the storyline was somewhat spoiled for me, as somebody I know (and now despise) had the stupidity to tell me what the twist was. So, rather than appreciating what should have been an excellent exercise in astounding revelations, I sat through the movie thinking "oooh, that's clever" and "of course, I understand why that happened". I feel rather cheated out of watching it for the first time, all in all, which is more than a little disappointing. So, if you have seen the film, or you know the twist for some other reason, then keep your mouth firmly shut, and don't spoil it for others. And therin lies the film's main weakness - it is extremely vulnerable. A great deal of the film's effectiveness relies on the fact that people will not talk about it to other people who have not seen the movie. And, as we know, people have a tendency to blab.
This gripe aside, "The Sixth Sense" gains a lot of praise (and deservedly so) for being a cunning little movie with a nice line in scaring the pants off you. I feel that a great deal of praise should also go to the studios who produced this film (Hollywood Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment), for not leaving it to fester, or become a low-budget B-movie, a straight-to-video job, as it could easily have been. These sorts of thrillers are ten-a-penny these days, and it's nice to see that they recognised Shyamalan's talent for writing and directing, and gave the project a budget, a distribution and a cast it deserved. (Although one can speculate that it's reaping the rewards by taking in a phenomenal amount of money - rightly so, too).
The cinematography is well done, the soundtrack not too intrusive, and there are no appalling performances to spoil the rest of the movie's grandeur. "The Sixth Sense" is a good movie, pitched at exactly the right level, and it's a great night out at the cinema too. Even my parents enjoyed it, so it must be doing something right!