Review of The Sixth Sense (1999) by Shane M — 26 Feb 2014
"I see dead people." An M. Night Shyamalan masterpiece, and his best film (why is he a failure now?). The Sixth Sense follows a young boy who claims to see ghosts, and a psychologist tries to help the best he can, while also trying to deal with his personal life, as well as the boy trying to deal with his.
This psychological horror flick is nothing compared to the traditional high budget horror flick is that it actually delivers what audiences want, a phenomenal work of art. The film has a creepy atmosphere aided by visions of ghosts, disturbing imagery, stellar acting, and James Newton Howard's score.
M. Night Shyamalan's directorial debut is one of the best, as he's able to blend psychology with horror and thrills, creating one of the most culturally phenomenal films ever. The iconic twist ending is hard to believe as the execution of the film keeps you from believing the truth, showcasing the best writing of Shyamalan's falling career, and it's also the best direction as he is able to capture the visual look and narrative structure while directing, showcasing the best direction of his career (anything bad about him now was amazing here).
Yak Fujimoto expertly shoots each scene with the right angle and range, and Andrew Mondshein edits the film perfectively. The best thing about this is the acting, and there's so much you can endure from the stars in this, including the above-average performance from Haley Joel Osment, who received an Oscar nod at age 11, despite the fact that he has become forgotten (not exactly true, but he hasn't done much for a long time).
Bruce Willis as Dr. Malcolm Crowe shows his full talent as an actor, though it fails to be as powerful's as Osment's. Toni Collete also does a good job as Lynn Sear, Cole Sear's (Osment's) mom, who tried to cope with her son's mental condition, and what's going on in their lives.
The supernatural elements and the twist ending is what made Shyamalan an icon at the time, though now, he's become one of the worst Hollywood directors, and a "one-trick" filmmaker. Even if we hate him now, we still love him for doing this as he crafted something intelligent, scary, and thrilling all at the same time.
A must-see, and an undisputed masterpiece from an otherwise awful filmmaker.
This review of The Sixth Sense (1999) was written by Shane M on 26 Feb 2014.
The Sixth Sense has generally received very positive reviews.
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