A genuinely thoughtful and well made thriller

Rating: Null/10 (9 May 2000)

I have been waiting for ages to see this film, having missed at the local cinema. I have avoided all of the reviews and spoilers, and my perseverance was rewarded. This film is so subtle, so beautifully constructed, so well acted, that it is a real treat for anyone who likes their thrillers made with intelligence, rather than scaring your pants off with blood and gore.

Everyone will identify with Cole, wonderfully played by Hayley Joel Osment. We have all had that feeling of being scared of the dark, hiding in our safe place, feeling the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, with no logical explanation why. He manages to convey, with just a look, the true, paralysing horror of what he has seen. A word of congratulation must be added here for the director, M. Night Shyamalan. It would have been so easy to cultivate a performance that included lots of screaming and eye rolling.
Bruce Willis and Toni Colette also give terrific performances; the best seen from Bruce in a long time.
I won't give away the ending, but if you enjoyed the sense of pervading eeriness, as in The Woman in Black, then you will enjoy this.