Last masterpiece of the 20th century

Rating: 10/10 (10 April 2000)

This movie really shows, that today's movies don't have to be mainstream, not-innovative, pseudo-intellectual and flat-plotted. Instead it shows, that good film-making also can be achieved by stuff, producers normally would go mad about - such a movie as "The 6th Sense". With no big publicity at all (at least here in Germany) this film started in December last year and went straight to #1, leaving "block busters" as Schwarzenegger's "End of Days" etc. far, far behind. The story is awesome - M. Night Shyamalan did a great job and the way HOW he tells the story and brings it to the audience reminded me of the perfection of Alfred Hitchcock; even when Cole and Doctor Crowe stand in front of a door with a knob, you just see Cole being mirrored in the metallic surface, although Crowe stands right by his side. And when the plot reveals that Dr. Crowe actually died right at the beginning of the movie and you resume Cole's words of "I see dead people..." it makes you shivering although the movie ended - and the impact is even bigger while watching the movie a second time. Its "silent" horror combined with a tragic story of both Malcolm and Cole and Willis' and Osment's overwhelming acting makes this film a real masterpiece. Not honored by the Academy at all, it just shows that the movie is too good for the Oscars - it is just not mainstream, not-innovative, pseudo-intellectual and flat-plotted, and with all these points it's no real film for the Academy; normally I see Oscars in important categories as a warning that the film is bad, and once again I have been encouraged to keep this another year; last time it was this lame mainstreamer "Titanic" and this time we had "American Beauty". Poor Academy! Maybe next time. For me the winner of the Oscar for at least "Best Film" and "Best Supporting Actor" is "The 6th Sense" and Haley Joel Osment.