Beautiful and Terrifying.

Rating: 9/10 (24 November 2006)

Unknown director M. Night Shyamalan's third film surprised everyone by becoming one of the most successful horror/thriller movies of all time. Bruce Willis ('Die Hard,' 1988) plays Dr. Malcolm Crowe, a disheartened child psychologist who can no longer talk to his wife, and is haunted by the memories of a former patient he couldn't help.
When he discovers young Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment, 'Artificial Intelligence: AI,' 2002), a child with strikingly similar psychological problems to the boy he had previously failed, Crowe is determined assist him. However, Cole harbours a terrifying secret that is simply too shocking to believe: he can see dead people!
Shyamalan's beautiful and terrifying masterpiece was nominated for a very respectable six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress for Australian Toni Collette ('Muriel's Wedding,' 1994) as Cole's worried and confused mother, and Best Supporting Actor for the brilliant Osment, at the age of just 11. Willis is also very good, turning in an appropriately understated performance that often eludes critical recognition.