Worth a Second Look.

Rating: 8/10 (30 January 2005)

This movie is definitely worth a second look. It is of a rare breed of films that are vastly better to view the second time around, when all the expectations, hype and surprise of the film are relieved. If the author/director of this film was unknown and no misleading trailer was ever shown, I believe that this would have been rated much higher based on the merits of the film and story itself. This is a well-written, well-acted piece of theater that is best viewed without a preconceived notion of the adventure or outcome.
Upon first viewing, the movie simply did not live up to my expectations. I remember coming out of the theater feeling disappointed at this movie, and rightfully so. It did not live up to expectations of a Sixth-Sense revelation to be sprung on the viewer somewhere close to the end, and upon learning from the trailers that M. Night Shyamalan was doing horror, I was expecting some jaw-tightening tension that was not supported by the viewing.
However, upon seeing this film a second time, the depth of the story, the superior acting and the colorful photography stands out as remarkable.