Cole Sear's initiation

As of this writing, Epinions already has 377 customer reviews showing for The Sixth Sense; however, this movie was so awesome resistance from writing about it is futile, regardless as to whether or not it may be useful. It is rare to find a movie that approaches ghosts and psychic ability in such a realistic manner; this one's a treasure to those who follow the subject.

The story centers around two people, Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) and Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment). Malcolm is a child psychologist who is shot by one of his now-adult former patients, Vincent Grey (Donnie Wahlberg), in the opening of the story. Several months later, Malcolm has apparently recovered and starts treating a new patient, nine-year-old Cole Sear, who is in a similar situation to Vincent's and showing the same symptoms. Cole's parents are divorced and he has no close friends. As a matter of fact, many call him a freak. Cole's mother, Lynn (Toni Collette), keeps noticing odd occurrences around her son and begs him to tell her what's going on. Finally, Cole confides to Malcolm that he sees dead people. Malcolm is skeptical at first, then found some corroboration for this "gift" in his archives of Vincent's case. It soon becomes clear to Malcolm that the guidance Cole really needs is to face his talent and how to work with it. In the meantime, this inexperienced child gives Malcolm advice on how to handle his marriage problems.

The mood of this vehicle is quiet, building up its tension with suggestion, which starts when Malcolm's wife, Anna (Olivia Williams), shivers while grabbing a bottle of wine in the basement of their home. The way it briefly fades to black after major crisis points adds to its momentum. It replaces the sense of history in Philadelphia, where the story takes place, with one of spookiness. The ghosts who come looking for Cole in his home have a bone-chilling affect that makes the audience jump.

Willis (Die Hard, The Whole Ten Yards) gives a performance that's worthy of an Oscar nomination, even if the Academy preferred five other performances. He sheds enough of his macho image to play a sensitive professional who has private frustrations. He is convincing in this gentler role, tempered with the guilt over Malcolm's failing Vincent underlining his motivation regarding Cole.

Osment (Secondhand Lions) is exceptional as the troubled child. Despite Cole's resistance to talk about what's really bothering him, Osment's eyes constantly implore others for help. Anyone with any compassion would be anxious to offer him comfort. Once Cole faces his destiny, it's amazing how much lighter Osment projects his character.

Collette (Connie and Carla, About a Boy) portrays the baffled, single mother well. At first it's hard to tell whether she's abusive or protective, and the ambiguity serves the story well. Williams (Peter Pan) has the most challenging scene to play in the restaurant and her sarcastic yet woeful words achieve just the right effect. Wahlberg (Dreamcatcher) as the unhinged assailant conveys the fright, confusion, and nihilism of the unresolved circumstances that have hovered over Vincent most of his life.

In an interview Director and Screenwriter M. Night Shyamalan did on NPR's Fresh Air when this movie was first released, he claims he has had no outstanding paranormal experiences. It's hard to believe he's that out-of-touch after an incident another medium had.

When I went to see The Sixth Sense during the first week of its release, I had arranged to go with a few friends, one of whom is a medium of the same caliber as Cole. We were to meet at a restaurant, then go to a showing at the theater across the street. The medium neither met us at the restaurant nor caught up with us at the theater, even though she has always been very good about letting people know when she couldn't fulfill her engagements. When I talked to her later, she said for some reason, she couldn't find the restaurant. That was rather odd, since it was an area she was familiar with. Instead, she went to a nearby mall to window shop until she could meet the rest of us at the theater. Unfortunately, she missed the showing when she realized too late that it was time to go. Several days later, she saw the movie on her own and claims it turned her into a basket case. It was uncannily similar to her own experience and shook her up more and more as the story progressed. She had no idea what the movie was about beforehand and needed the rest of the evening alone to compose herself. Her "circle" of spirit guides had prevented her from attending the showing we had planned for that very reason. (They were correct she wouldn't have gotten any peace. I was bursting to ask her all kinds of questions afterward.)

For what it is worth, my medium friend claims the gift to talk with the dead is not the privilege some people believe it to be. She generally does not advertise this ability, preferring to keep her life as normal as possible. She always has voices in her head and has to build up shielding like the tent Cole kept in his bedroom to avoid the anxiety of dealing with all of the strong emotions that surround her. (When the little girl appears in the tent with Cole, it was on his invitation.) Whenever a disaster that leads to massive deaths occurs around the world, people with her talents are besieged by the spirits of the suddenly dead who want to send messages to their loved ones. September 11, 2001 was the worst for her, since she would have liked to help them, but consider approaching stranger with that kind of message.

This story is more realistic than Shyamalan credited. There is a great deal of character growth in the ending, but in actuality some of Cole's greatest challenges come in learning afterward how to deal with his sixth sense. It's also beautifully directed.

This movie is a gripping picture of paranormal life. The ghosts don't reach out and grab people the way they do in The Haunting or The House on Haunted Hill, they're frightening just by looking for attention. The Sixth Sense is a gem that shows how disruptive the ability can be to the lives of those who have it.


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Originally posted at Amazon.com on August 8, 2000. Updated and revised for Epinions.