Poorly-made fluff

Rating: 2/10 (13 May 2004)

Since I'm sure anyone who hasn't seen the film yet (and hasn't had it spoiled for them) has already been subjected to numerous accolades for Director M. Night Shyamalan, I'll get right to the point of my review: no, Sixth Sense is not a good movie. It is a mass of poorly-joined, generally pointless fluff, punctuated by a hilariously-contrived and completely predictable "twist." This is unfortunate, because due to the weakness of the material surrounding it, the entire production sinks or swims on the strength of that one plot twist.
Ergo, A. If you figure it out before it happens, B. If somebody spoils it for you, or C. You're not surprised by anything in movies, then the film is absolutely worthless.
Shyamalan does get bonus points for creating a creepy-as-hell atmosphere--but creepy atmosphere doesn't make a good movie. The Sixth Sense lacks quality character development, decent performances (Bruce Willis is flat, as is Haley Joel Osment), and a plot that is involving, or at least coherent. In place of these key factors is merely a series of unrelated events, each of which inevitably--and predictably--ends in a telegraphed "boo!" moment, complete with an atonal stab of music and a jumpy edit. Fine for the Scream crowd, but I look for a little more intelligence in my horror movies.