The Sixth Sense begs to be seen again.
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I remember my mother telling me about her younger brother, a boy who died in early childhood, having "second sight." He could see people and events in his mind, many miles removed, like interrupting play one morning to announce that his aunt had died. Several hours later, word arrived that the aunt had, indeed, passed away unexpectedly. Talk to most people and they'll tell you stories of their personal involvement, sometimes firsthand, with psychic phenomena, ESP, or the paranormal. Maybe that's why "The Sixth Sense" moves us; it explores a common bond of unreality.
It's also reassuring to know that a relatively small, quiet film can become a runaway hit in this age of special-effects extravaganzas. Of course, it helps that the film focuses on the supernatural and that it stars Bruce Willis, both proven commodities with movie audiences.
Willis plays Dr. Malcolm Crowe, a prosperous, well-respected child psychologist, whose life is disrupted when a former patient breaks into his home with the intent to shoot him and commit suicide. Following the incident, we move forward a year. The shooting has done more than shatter the doctor's body and psyche, it has shattered his marriage as well. In an attempt to put his life back in order, Crowe takes on the difficult case of a little boy, Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), considered a freak by his peers and a troublemaker at school. Crowe works with the boy, and Cole slowly begins to trust his doctor enough to reveal to him a secret: he sees ghosts. As the plot develops, we see that the doctor and his young client are very much alike and that their relationship is therapeutic for the both of them.
It's a mesmerizing story and not at all gross or unnecessarily violent. Willis puts in the performance of a lifetime, controlled, reserved, understated, sometimes seemingly aloof but always within character. Eleven-year-old Haley Osment is equally impressive. He does not strike one as a child actor but as simply a child. Not even his occasionally distracting mannerisms, like speaking under his breath, detract from the overall efficacy of his interpretation. He makes us see the frustration there must be for a kid who "sees things" to make anyone believe him. The story line takes a while to unfold, but by the time the boy exclaims, about halfway through, "I see dead people," we're not about to move even for another mouthful of popcorn.
The two main supporting roles are played efficiently by Olivia Williams as Crowe's wife and Toni Collette as Cole's mother. Writer-director M. Night Shyamalan's previous film, "Wide Awake," was also about a young boy on a spiritual journey, but it didn't have the universal appeal or nonpareil surprises this one does. Mr. Shyamalan's name may be hard to pronounce (and to spell), but I suspect after the success of "The Sixth Sense," it will be hard to forget. I mean, who could forget "Night"?
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