The Sixth Sense

The Sixth Sense is a supernatural horror thriller film released in 1999 written and directed by  M. Night Shyamalan. It is about a child psychologist, Malcolm Crowe who feels he has to help a young boy, Cole Sear who 'can see dead people'. It stars Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment, Toni Collette and Olivia Williams. The reason we watched this film is too look at how it uses suspenseful moments throughout the whole movie and what effect that has on the audience. 

Close-up of Anna

One scene I choose that I thought has a really good use of suspense was the very opening scene where Anna (Williams), Malcolm's wife goes down into the basement to get a bottle of wine, and she gets spooked by something and runs back upstairs. There is a close up of a naked light bulb gradually turning itself on. This is used to build the anticipation and suspense. It may be used to represent the gradual understanding that Malcolm gains spending time with Cole as well as symbolising the understanding the audience gains as the film progresses and they find things out about the characters. After this there is another close-up, this time of Anna, looking for a bottle of wine, in the dark basement. This is used to

This is the naked lightblub

obviously add suspense to the scene as well as to establish the setting. It shows the eerie basement, which could be used to establish how Shyamalan wanted the theme for the film to be. There is a long shot of Anna, after she shivers and her facial expression changes, this is something that many of the characters experience in their own way when faced with 'ghosts' As well as this it also makes the audience worried about what might happen to Anna, she seen as the victim in

This shows you her outfit

this scene. It also shows us what she is wearing, it seems to be an expensive dress, showing that she is of a higher class and in thriller films it is usually people of a higher class that become the victim, again creating the tension that something bad is going to happen. The final piece of camera work that I thought was used to make this scene filled with suspension was when there was a shot of Anna's feet running up the stairs, back to the light filled house where she has her husband to protect her. The reason she is running is because she is afraid of the dark, something she cant see. This is the opposite to Cole, who is afraid of the dead people that he can see. Throughout the scene there is no soundtrack; only diegetic sound of what Anna is doing, this adds suspense because at any moment that could change, meaning the audience is on the edge of their seats hoping that nothing bad happens to Anna.

The second scene that I think has a really good use of suspense is when Cole is invited to the birthday party. The boys in the house lock him in a little room and he has some type of panic attack and injures himself because he can't get out and his mum can't get him out either. 

The balloons as the scene starts

When looking at the camerawork, there are various different angles that weren't used in the opening scene but still work well together to create suspense. Firstly, there is a low angle shot of the balloons on the front of house, this indicates that Cole has gone to a birthday party and we know that he isn't very sociable at school so we automatically worry for his safety, creating tension. When Cole is sitting at the bottom of the stairs, after his magic has been rejected by one of the other boys he lets go of his balloon. There is a close up of his face as he watches the balloon float off then it cuts to where it is going, up too the top of the spiral staircase. This is known as eyeline match. Commonly there are negative connotations associated with thriller films, so again we worry as we know he will go and get the balloon. Furthermore, the camera slowly follows him up the stairs, showing because he is just a little boy he is still afraid of things. This makes us sympathise with Cole because even though he is going through almost adult things, he is still only 9 years old. Then there is a high angle shot of the boys walking up the stairs, following Cole. We as the audience worry about him and what these boys might do to him.

Mid-shot of Coles mum

Then we see them shove him into the cupboard. There is a mid-shot of his mum panicking when she is trying to get him as he has a panic attack. This scene is seen to be quite emotional because many people can understand a mothers love for their child, this adds suspense to the scene. This links to the editing because when she finally pulls him out, it goes into slow motion, this could again show her fear that she is going to loose her only son, making us worry for his health and his safety. 

Cole looking at his balloon

The mise-en-scene adds suspense because it all seems pretty normal, its a little boys birthday party. Cole is wearing smart-casual clothes, this could show how is trying to the impress the other kids at the party as he just wants friends, to be normal. The lighting seems to be normal for a birthday party until he lets go of his balloon and he has to go and get it, this could foreshadow the danger he gets himself into. The sound is also pretty normal, diegetic sounds that we would commonly associate with birthday parties. That is until we start to hear the voices that Cole can hear, making us sit on the edge of our seats. Finally, there is the sound of the balloon popping, which could be seen as foreshadowing his future injuries. The balloon plays an important role in this scene as there are various shots involving one and how they can represent Cole, creating suspense. 

Long shot of Cole in hospital bed

The third and final scene, I thought added suspense really well to the movie was when Cole is in the hospital and he tells Crowe that he 'sees dead people.' At first there is a long shot showing Cole in the hospital bed, this shot is used to establish the setting for the scene as hospitals are seen to be creepy within the thriller genre. As well as this, the shot again reinforces the idea of Coles vulnerability, this is later proven again in the same scene when he is seen wearing socks that are too big for him. There is a shot reverse shot used when Crowe is trying to tell Cole a story, this adds

Close up of Cole talking to Crowe

suspense because we are worried for the little boy in the hospital bed as he is so little people still tell him stories. The camera then zooms in on his face, showing how afraid he is and the shot stays this way throughout the rest of the scene, it becomes especially important when he tells Crowe he sees dead people as it fully enforces the vulnerability of the little boy as well as how afraid he is, via the tear that are in his eyes. 

Shot of his socks

There is little to no sound throughout the scene until the pair start talking about Coles secret. This adds suspense because it leaves the audience waiting just as Crowe has been waiting to find out Coles secret. When the music does begin to play it is the same instrumental that's seen variously throughout the film, including in the opening credits. It is what we would commonly associate with thriller films, low pitch, very intense and extremely dramatic in comparison to the whispering voice that belongs to Cole.