The Magician: A Master At Work

Rating: 10/10 (22 October 2004)

***POSSIBLE SPOILERS*** "The Sixth Sense" is the work of perfecting deception and scenarios, of mastering the art of keeping the audience at the edge of their seat for one chilling sequence and surprise after another, and it is by and large the work of an extremely talented, conscientious, and ambitious filmmaker- M. Night Shaymalan. The premise of this ingenious thriller involves the relationship of a disparaged child psychologist (Willis) and a curious, coy, prodigal young boy who is uniquely troubled, he "sees dead people", and is lost as to how to embrace the spirits he encounters. Yet, being the master of deception that Shaymalan synonymously is, one cannot merely accept this as a single premise, for there is much, much more beneath the surface of this curious relationship. In viewing a film such as this and defying its deceiving premise, it is important to note and consider all of the facts throughout the film, as there are so many clues pertinent to the "stupefying conclusion" that the "surprise ending" is almost pronounced by Shaymalan, and you can hardly fault him for being unfair and disloyal to the facts, for upon review, it is the oblivious viewer who has been stumped by the subtle Shaymalan. Here is a film that provides plenty of chilling suspense, enticing dialogue, and confounding mystery, and even manages to conclude on one of the most ingenious, adroit notes in film: the filmmaker is controlling all of the shots here, and the viewer is merely following his lead! Excellent direction from Shaymalan, brilliant acting by Willis and Osment, interesting and original screenplay, and overall, an ingenious cinematic effort that is more intelligent than it seems.
**** out of ****