The Sixth Sense is remembered for its shocking twist, its fascinating universe, and its role in turning director and writer M. Night Shyamalan into a household name. The movie centers around a child psychologist (Bruce Willis) who works with Cole (Haley Joel Osment), a little boy who can see The Sixth Sense‘s many ghosts. It was a critical and commercial success, having been nominated for six Academy Awards, four BAFTAs, and two Golden Globes.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Osment explained exactly what set the movie apart from its contemporary horror movies. Rather than relying on jump scares to keep audiences engaged, Shyamalan instituted a rule that there would be no deceitful scares. Every thrill would be completely real and would be grounded in character moments and relationships. Check out Osment’s full explanation of the rule below:
I think that one of the things he was most concerned about — and he brought this up in our very first meeting when we got to Philadelphia — was avoiding the trend of horror movies that play the jump scares in a really unnatural way, the type where somebody has a hand hit their shoulder in the hallway and it’s like, “Oh, it’s just their friend” or fakeouts like that. Night said, “We’re not going to treat the audience that way.
All of the frightening moments have to come from a very real place
, and have to come from people’s relationships with the characters.”
The Sixth Sense’s Rule Was Unique
The Jump Scare Rule Helped To Set The Sixth Sense Apart
Cole Sear’s reveal that Bruce Willis’ character has been dead all along is so ingrained in the popular consciousness that it is easy to set aside or ignore. The Sixth Sense‘s ending, after all, has been repeated so often that new viewers are likely unable to appreciate the twist for what it was. Yet, at the time, it was completely groundbreaking. The twist at the end of the movie prompted audiences to return to theaters to review the movie again after watching the ending, leading to a $673 million box office take on a $40 million budget.
After years of disappointments at the box office for horror movies, Shyamalan’s influential hit was coming on the heels of July 30, 1999’s The Blair Witch Project, which was a found footage horror movie featuring ghosts. Shyamalan’s story was different, but it was undoubtedly threatening to see the $250 million movie released before his release, which came the next week on August 6, 1999. Yet, by setting aside jump scares to focus instead on character, the director ensured that his project was unique and different enough to draw an entirely new audience.
Our Take On The Sixth Sense’s Jump Scare Rule
The Movie Is Remembered As A Thriller, Not A Horror
The rule was so influential that this movie is not widely considered to be a horror movie at all. Instead of terrifying viewers, it instead became a psychological character-focused drama. The characters had thrilling stories that were not downright terrifying. The twist at the end of The Sixth Sense was the most influential element, and it did not rely on a ghost leaping out of the ether. Instead, as Shyamalan insisted, it was impactful due to the weight of every character’s relationships, which is why it worked so well. Future filmmakers would do well to consider the movie’s many lessons.
Source: EW
