it 's a curious thing - i 've found that when willis is not called on to carry the whole movie , he 's much better and so is the movie .
even though , in the sixth sense he is the " name " , he does n't have the pivotal role .
that honour goes to haley osment who plays cole sear ( cute pun , seer ) a 9 year old boy who can see ghosts .
if osment was cute or precious , the director going for the maudlin , this would be nothing more than a movie - of - the - week , thankfully , osment is not only better than that , but in some instances , blows everyone else off the screen in a bravura performance .
we get to see his fears , vulnerabilities , strengths and intelligence which makes the sixth sense one of the best movies i 've seen this year .
the whole cast matches him in quality , with willis giving a fairly low key performance that matches the subject matter .
one thing about this movie , its target .
this is n't a sfxfest like the haunting or a gorefest , this is more what i 'd call a supernatural drama , more interested in characters than in dazzling you with makeup .
one caveat :
there 's a lovely twist in the movie , something like the usual suspects , where you end up replaying the movie in your head rethinking what you have just seen .
i was extremely lucky to see it as a sneak preview in toronto , before any hype or critical reviews were out , so i went in with no biases .
if anyone want to talk to about the movie before you see it , do n't let them .
let the director explain on his own pace and you 'll enjoy the movie vastly more .
blows everyone else off the screen in a bravura performance cast matches him in quality one of the best movies i 've seen this year