The Sixth Sense
"The Sixth Sense", with Bruce Willis, Olivia Williams, Haley Joel Osment and Toni Collette. Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. MPAA Rating PG-13 for language and intense themes. Run time 104 minutes.
I had almost given up 1999 as the year without a truly memorable moovie. "The Sixth Sense" changed all that. And, oddly enough, not because of a great story or execution, but because of its purity and simplicity. If you're one of the few that haven't seen "The Sixth Sense" yet, you'll recognize it by the understated and calm voice of little Cole Seal (Haley Joel Osment) whispering the whole plot in the trailer- "I see dead people!"
But I'm getting ahead of myself - Psychologist Dr. Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) works with kids. He helps them with their problems. He's good at it. When we first meet Dr. Crowe, he and his wife Anna (Olivia Williams) are celebrating recognition by his peers for doing just that. But the celebration sours when a now grown, and dementedly spooky ex-patient breaks into the Coles' house and proceeds to ruin the party.
Dr. Crowe is shaken to the roots by this close encounter, but as he takes on a new patient, Cole Seal, he sees eerie parallels to to the creepy guy in his house. Cole is quiet, withdrawn and nearly unable to function in the real world, because, as we said before - he sees dead people. Everywhere. Cole is a sort of unwilling clearing house for the recently departed.
Over time, Cole and Dr. Crowe find a common ground, and the good doc helps Cole find ways to deal with he thinks are simple delusions and hallucinations. Dr. Crowe's life, however, has taken a turn for the worse - his wife hardly seems to notice he exists, and the gap continues to widen to the point where Crowe actually considers giving up on Cole, and trying to reclaim his life. Of course he doesn't, and the two work out Cole's problems. That's not the real end of the moovie, but you'll have to fill in the rest yourself. Nice twist at the end.
The heart of this moovie is the incredible Haley Joel Osment, who at the ripe old age of eleven is a veteran actor, and capable of more expression and subtlety than many actors five times his age. This kid shines. He doesn't throw himself at this role - he lets the part come to him, and it fits perfectly. He even softens the edges of Bruce Willis, who, as he ages, is starting to converge on a Mickey Roark look and feel. We won't even mention his hair. But, if there is justice in the Universe, someday soon Adam Sandler will be driving Osment's limousine. For minimum wage.
Tremendous credit also goes to M. Night Shyamalan for not beating this moovie to death. Another director might have had the flaming undead popping up out of sewers and the like - and there was plenty of fright and gore for a PG-13 film - but Shyamalan let the story play out on an even keel, never forced it, and brought the twisty payoff down around you like a net. In fact, I'm considering an encore just to see what it's like when I know the ending. This work is as intelligent and original as anything David Mamet's done, (I'm a HUGE Mamet fan) and equally well produced. A good storyteller just doesn't have to yell. If success doesn't ruin him, we'll have years of good stuff from Shyamalan - he's not even thirty yet.
Equal credit to journeyman cinematographer Tak Fujimoto (Philadelphia, Silence of The Lambs) for outstanding camera work. Again, simple and unobtrusive beats snap zooms and "the shaky cam" any day. Tak and Shyamalan let the actors act, and the result is well worth the effort. You get the opportunity to get involved, and before you know it, the rug you were standing on is ten feet away, and you're headed for the floor.
Don't expect "The Sixth Sense" to clean up at the Oscars, life isn't that fair. But do go see it - you won't be disappointed. It's original, intense and well crafted. I'm going back again, and I'm taking all four of my cows with me.
I had almost given up 1999 as the year without a truly memorable moovie. "The Sixth Sense" changed all that. And, oddly enough, not because of a great story or execution, but because of its purity and simplicity. If you're one of the few that haven't seen "The Sixth Sense" yet, you'll recognize it by the understated and calm voice of little Cole Seal (Haley Joel Osment) whispering the whole plot in the trailer- "I see dead people!"
But I'm getting ahead of myself - Psychologist Dr. Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) works with kids. He helps them with their problems. He's good at it. When we first meet Dr. Crowe, he and his wife Anna (Olivia Williams) are celebrating recognition by his peers for doing just that. But the celebration sours when a now grown, and dementedly spooky ex-patient breaks into the Coles' house and proceeds to ruin the party.
Dr. Crowe is shaken to the roots by this close encounter, but as he takes on a new patient, Cole Seal, he sees eerie parallels to to the creepy guy in his house. Cole is quiet, withdrawn and nearly unable to function in the real world, because, as we said before - he sees dead people. Everywhere. Cole is a sort of unwilling clearing house for the recently departed.
Over time, Cole and Dr. Crowe find a common ground, and the good doc helps Cole find ways to deal with he thinks are simple delusions and hallucinations. Dr. Crowe's life, however, has taken a turn for the worse - his wife hardly seems to notice he exists, and the gap continues to widen to the point where Crowe actually considers giving up on Cole, and trying to reclaim his life. Of course he doesn't, and the two work out Cole's problems. That's not the real end of the moovie, but you'll have to fill in the rest yourself. Nice twist at the end.
The heart of this moovie is the incredible Haley Joel Osment, who at the ripe old age of eleven is a veteran actor, and capable of more expression and subtlety than many actors five times his age. This kid shines. He doesn't throw himself at this role - he lets the part come to him, and it fits perfectly. He even softens the edges of Bruce Willis, who, as he ages, is starting to converge on a Mickey Roark look and feel. We won't even mention his hair. But, if there is justice in the Universe, someday soon Adam Sandler will be driving Osment's limousine. For minimum wage.
Tremendous credit also goes to M. Night Shyamalan for not beating this moovie to death. Another director might have had the flaming undead popping up out of sewers and the like - and there was plenty of fright and gore for a PG-13 film - but Shyamalan let the story play out on an even keel, never forced it, and brought the twisty payoff down around you like a net. In fact, I'm considering an encore just to see what it's like when I know the ending. This work is as intelligent and original as anything David Mamet's done, (I'm a HUGE Mamet fan) and equally well produced. A good storyteller just doesn't have to yell. If success doesn't ruin him, we'll have years of good stuff from Shyamalan - he's not even thirty yet.
Equal credit to journeyman cinematographer Tak Fujimoto (Philadelphia, Silence of The Lambs) for outstanding camera work. Again, simple and unobtrusive beats snap zooms and "the shaky cam" any day. Tak and Shyamalan let the actors act, and the result is well worth the effort. You get the opportunity to get involved, and before you know it, the rug you were standing on is ten feet away, and you're headed for the floor.
Don't expect "The Sixth Sense" to clean up at the Oscars, life isn't that fair. But do go see it - you won't be disappointed. It's original, intense and well crafted. I'm going back again, and I'm taking all four of my cows with me.
