Music for the masses

Rating: 5/10 (15 September 1999)

The Sixth Sense is one of those movies that will appeal to the mainstream viewer: nothing in it is shocking, there's nothing particularly menacing about it and everything is wrapped up in a nice, sweet, little package by the end.
The performances by Osment and Collette are excellent but it doesn't make up for the tedious pace of the plot. Two-thirds of the movie deals with exposition which, in this case, is devoted to the interaction between Cole (Osment) and Malcolm (Willis). Cole's got a problem and Malcolm is determined to help him - as his problem is similar to one that another patient of his had whom he couldn't help. The problem is that we already know what Cole's problem is so we're left with an anti-climactic climax. When he tells Malcolm that he sees dead people, there's no shock value or significance. That leaves the resolution to Cole's problem as the focal point of the movie; however, it's so tame it makes you wonder what the big deal was in the first place.

The movie works best when Cole and his mother (Collette) are together. There's a particular scene at the end when they are in the car that is incredibly touching. The movie breaks down when it tries to be scary, though. There are a few startling scenes but, overall, it's devoid of any real terror. How it was labeled as a horror movie, I'll never understand.

Overall, it's a pretty decent movie - much better than what Hollywood usually puts out - but, in the end, it's nothing to write home about. In my opinion, of course.