Good, but not good enough

Rating: 7/10 (23 November 2000)

I've always tried to convince myself that it is bad to go see a movie waiting for a masterpiece. I've done it a thousand times and I'm almost always leaving the theatre disappointed. I remember when i went to see "The sixth sense" I didn't know what to expect. A new young director who had also written the script wasn't telling me much... After watching the movie I knew M.Shyamalan would be one of my favourite directors. So when I show the previews of his new movie I was expecting a new "sixth sense".
Unfortunately that wasn't what i found yesterday when i actually saw the movie. Don't get me wrong; the movie is quite good and surely better than a bunch of other c*** we are watching this time of year. Is it though good enough for Shyamalan? In my opinion NO.
The problem with this movie is mainly focused at the story. You immediately understand the main point and you are waiting for something interesting, something different, something special to happen...but it never does!! The concept is great and that proves what a movie genius Shyamalan is but... This movie gave me the feeling of something waiting to happen but it never did. I left the theatre wondering "is that all?". You know, the same feeling of something good left incomplete...
No-one can say that it is a bad movie. It is perfectly directed (i remember the same scenes with the camera moving up and down following the actors, the same way as in the previous movie), i think both the main actors did their best in the limits of their roles ( i loved the way Willis was moving and talking, plu

s the fact that in the whole movie he never smiled a bit...)and as expected the photography and the soundtrack were the most appropriate. Most of the scenes were taken in the dark or in mostly "grey" environment and the movie in total was perfectly balanced around the characters.But... But it was extremely slow (even for Shyamalan...) and the main problem in my opinion is that it didn't promote the story. This story could open a thousand new doors for someone like Shyamalan but for a strange reason he decided not to follow any of them. After the first half an hour you are wondering why you are watching the same staff over and over again...why doesn't he move forward? Trust me this was the most disappointing part for me...
I really cannot explain why a so talented director didn't spot that at any point... I can't believe that watching the movie himself he didn't feel he left the job unfinished... It is a shame because this could be another excellent movie. Instead it is just another "good" movie, among the hundreds other that come out each year!! I gave this movie a "7" (doesn't this show how subjective i am towards Shyamalan??) but i was expecting a "12"!!!! Let's hope that he will spot the problems and next time he will deliver a new "Sixth Sense"!!!!