The Sixth Sense (1999)

This is a rare film that combines great acting, a great script and great direction. I expected to like the movie when I went to see it. I was, however, unprepared to love it. I was genuinely startled by how good it is.

The movie is about Dr. Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis), a child psychologist. He receives a prestigious award from the mayor of Philadelphia and is at home celebrating with his wife. They are drinking to celebrate and are very clearly much in love. A man breaks into the house. He confronts Malcolm and reveals he was once a patient, angrily accusing Malcolm of failing him. He then shoots Malcolm and himself. A year later we see Malcolm again. He has recovered, physically. He has a new patient, Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) who reminds him of the young man who shot him earlier.

That's all I'll say of the plot. I wouldn't say that much but it's impossible to talk about the movie without a little background. Don't worry, all that I described happens in about the first 5-10 minutes of the movie.

Willis and Osment are the stars of the movie. Everyone else is a minor character. Those two are onscreen almost constantly and their chemistry is amazing. They both provide excellent performances. Osment in particular is astounding. This is the kind of work you expect from a veteran actor, not a child. His timing is great, his reactions are great, his facial expressions are great, etc. You get the idea. He sells the part of Coel perfectly. This is a child who is tortured because he sees ghosts all the time. He is constantly terrified and slowly losing his mind from it.

Willis counters perfectly. His character is desperately trying to redeem himself for his failure. He seems to be sacrificing his own marriage as he and his wife become distant. Willis is subtle and quiet, never overacting or trying to hard. This could easily be his best work ever.

The story is mesmerizing. The director (M. Night Shyamalan) lays it out slowly and carefully. No moments are wasted and everything points to something. There is a riddle here to be solved. It's a little different for each character. Cole needs help figuring out why the dead visit him. Malcolm needs to figure out what is wrong with Cole. Cole's mother (Toni Collete) needs to make her son well. Malcolm's wife (Olivia Williams) needs to figure out what went wrong with their life together.

The natural instinct is to compare this movie to other horror movies. Don't bother. This is nothing like The Blair Witch Project or The Haunting. The Blair Witch Project sought to give you the creeps as you watched people descend into madness from their own fear. The Haunting wanted to revive the scary haunted house story. The Sixth Sense isn't trying to scare you. It merely wants to unsettle you. Sure there are a few moments to make you jump but they are just set pieces meant to add a little flavor. What is wrong with Cole and what causes him to lead such a tortured terrified existence is the point here. It's a wonderful change of pace from what has passed for horror in recent years. I truly hope we get to see more movies like it. A movie that scares you by making you think is much more satisfying than one that tries to scare you by just making you jump.

- John Shea