The Sixth Sense


Starring Haley Joel Osment, Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Olivia Williams.

Malcolm Crowe (Willis) has just received an award from the mayor of Philadelphia for extraordinary service in child psychology. He's "celebrating" with his wife Anna (Williams) in their bedroom when they discover a grown up former patient who doesn't share the mayor's enthusiasm has broken in. He shoots Malcolm before killing himself. A year later, Malcolm meets a troubled 9 year-old Cole Sear (Osment) with a dark secret. Many have tried to help the bright young Cole, but all have failed, and although Cole likes Malcolm, he doesn't believe Malcolm can help. Cole's mom Lynn (Collette) is at her wits end because she knows Cole is troubled, but he refuses to confide in her. She tries to arrange play companions for Cole, but the kids just make fun of him, calling him "Freak".

At a party, some of the kids lock Cole in the attic, and he experiences what she assumes is a seizure. In the hospital, Cole confides his secret to Malcolm - he sees the ghosts of dead people, and they terrify him. As you would expect, Malcolm assumes Cole has a deep seated mental illness, and he wonders if he can help Cole. Meanwhile, Malcolm's relationship with his wife continues to deteriorate with his obsession in helping Cole, to the point where they no longer communicate and she finds she is attracted to a suitor at her work.

Unlike the usual high-decibel, low-cranium Bruce Willis project, The Sixth Sense is a sensitive, often frightening thriller, well written and most of the time internally consistent. The film succeeds because, at heart, the film is presented as a mystery. While we know in advance that Cole sees ghosts, we don't whether they're hostile, and why they continue to communicate with him. The action is low-key and believable as opposed to bombastic and effects-laden. In fact the only special effect used is old-fashioned blood. And it features a genuinely surprising twist near the end which works. The screenplay is overall quite good, revealing subtle hints of this twist that we only recognize afterwards.

The success of the film is aided immensely by the quite amazing performance of Osment. He is alternatingly intense, scared and vulnerable, and believable in each situation. His reactions when Malcolm is playing a read-your-mind game with Cole, and his eery revelation of his secret to Malcolm in the hospital both illustrate skill way beyond his years. The much and often unfairly maligned Willis is solid and restrained, allowing his youthful co-star to take the spotlight. Collette is down-to-earth and nicely projects the frustration of a mother who wants to, but just can't help her troubled son. The Sixth Sense is well-directed, well-made thriller well-worth seeing.




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