Possibly the year's best, certainly the best ghost story

Rating: 9/10 (9 August 1999)

I have been in love with stories of death, horror, and the supernatural since I was 10. I am now approaching 46. I have seen a great deal of death and horror, both fictional and real. Most fiction does not get much out of me, not a shudder, not a chill.
Until I saw "The Sixth Sense" (TSS), my favorite ghost story was "The Haunting", the 1963 version. It was followed by "Jacob's Ladder". "TSS" now is in first place.
This story is filled with pain and compassion, kindness and fear, and failure and redemption. This is a lot to get from a ghost story. And in the end, it all makes sense.
Bruce Willis as the psychologist, and Haley Joel Osment, as the troubled child have a wonderful chemistry. You believe they desperately wish to work with each other towards ending the child's torment. Furthermore, the terror and emotional pain the child displays is totally believable. This is what gives this movie the power it possess. When an emotional foundation is built, one does not require special effects and blood to engage us.
I heard the audience around me gasp at some of the scarier moments. Personally, I had the hair on my arms and the back of my neck raise. For a jaded cynic like me, this seldom happens.
If you have a weak heart or have religious convictions which would interfere with your enjoyment of a ghost story, do not see this movie. To everyone else, go see this movie. Then, after thinking about what you saw, see it again.