Tagged as the “must-see twice film” and if you’ve seen it once you’ll know why! If you haven’t seen it at all though, you are most definitely missing out. A film with one of the best twists of recent years – one, which you’ll be disappointed if you get straight away, or you will kick yourself for not getting it until you are supposed to.
The story begins with Malcolm (Bruce Willis), a child psychiatrist, whom, whilst relaxing at home with his wife has an unwelcome visitor – Vincent Gray, an old patient. Vincent is distraught and finds his way up into Malcolm’s bedroom where he shoots Malcolm and then shoots himself.
One year later and Malcolm starts to see a boy called Cole, whom initially seems to have problems fitting in, and is quite timid and unsettled. Malcolm describes Cole to be suffering from visual hallucinations, hysteria and schizophrenia. Soon Malcolm realises though that many of Cole’s ‘symptoms’ are similar
to Vincent’s when Malcolm was trying to treat him. As their relationship develops Malcolm manages to break through some of Cole’s barriers and he eventually reveals that “I see dead people”… which is the beginning of an unbelievable chain of events.
There is a brilliant cast including Donnie Wahlberg ( of New Kids on the Block fame) and Toni Collette. This is very much a character-driven piece which is unusual for such a huge blockbuster, but the performances from all of the actors are so fantastic that it is clear to see why the film was a massive success.
The DVD has quite a few features: Storyboard to film comparison. Shyamalan explains the need for storyboarding and gives and example from the film. This is alright but only if you have an avid interest in the film will you find it a useful feature.
The cast – An insight into the casting of the film with comments from the cast and crew plus behind-the-scenes footage.
Music and Sound design – Shyamalan and the composer of the score explain how the music was composed and the ideas behind it. Clips are shown from the film with just the music and sound effects – interestingly all of the backgrounds are in fact people breathing
Reaching the audience – Various members of the crew discuss the opening weekend, actual audience of the film and issues that were arisen with the audience after watching the film like religion and the afterlife.
Rules and clues – The director and producers explain the rules of the film which were used in order to make the film work second time round i.e. once you know the twist. Also the clues which lead to the ingenious end of the film. For example, it gets cold whenever there is an angry ghost around. A major clue is the use of the colour red – it is used with objects or people whom have been tainted by the spirit world.
Deleted scenes – There are only four but all are very interesting including quite a moving extended ending, though I think that it is clear why it does not work in the final product. These scenes are presented by M. Night Shyamalan explaining where they are in context to the rest of the film and why they were cut, then the scene is shown in full. I think that this is the best way I’ve seen deleted scenes be presented on any DVD. Usually there is the option of director’s commentary which means that you either miss out on watching the scene properly or on the director’s commentary or you end up watching it both with and without the commentary which can be extremely time-consuming.
A conversation with M. Night Shyamalan – The film’s director talks about his family background and past experiences which influenced parts of the film. He also mentions some of his previous works and talks about the ideals by which he lives his own life. Very interesting.
Publicity – Shows the theatrical trailer and two TV spots from American television.
Filmmaker and Cast bios – Quite in depth biographies of many of the cast and crew. Interesting but the print is quite small and it is difficult to read.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: John Duigan - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Charlize Theron, Stuart Townsend, Penelope Cruz
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Great very detailed op. Plenty of detailed information without giving too much of the plot away.
daisy1111 14.03.2003 13:19
twice!! ive seen this film about 6 times and i still love it!! Sad i know!!
Charis_of_Avallach 17.02.2003 16:52
An excellent op of my all time favourite film, a film written by and for everyone who sees dead people and anyone who loves a classic ghost story with a twist.
"I see dead people," whispers little Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), scared to affirm what ... more
is to him now a daily occurrence. This peaked nine-year old, already hypersensitive to begin with, is now being haunted by seemingly malevolent spirits. Child psy...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
"I see dead people," whispers little Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), scared to affirm what ... more
is to him now a daily occurrence. This peaked nine-year old, already hypersensitive to begin with, is now being haunted by seemingly malevolent spirits. Child psy...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
"I see dead people," whispers little Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), scared to affirm what ... more
is to him now a daily occurrence. This peaked nine-year old, already hypersensitive to begin with, is now being haunted by seemingly malevolent spirits. Child psy...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
After the assault and suicide of one of his ex-patients award-winning child psychologist ... more
Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) is left determined to help a young boy named Cole who suffers from the same diagnosis as the ex-patient - they both see dead people....
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Advantages: Very clever plot, unexpected twist, quality and quantity of extra features Disadvantages: If you know the twist in the film, it is not worth seeing
craigy_baby_2000 30.12.2000 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
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