Original poster artwork · Great Cinema Master List
Spoiler-free premise
Child psychologist Malcolm Crowe treats isolated Cole Sear, who claims he can see and speak with dead people.
Read expanded premiseLonger, still spoiler-free+
After a violent encounter with a former patient, Philadelphia psychologist Malcolm Crowe begins treating nine-year-old Cole Sear. Cole's fear, secrecy, and claim that he sees dead people challenge Malcolm to listen differently while his own marriage grows distant.
Why it belongs
The Sixth Sense makes supernatural fear intimate through withheld space, repeated visual clues, and Osment's remarkable mixture of terror and empathy.
Read expanded why it belongsThe fuller editorial case+
Doorways, red objects, cold breath, empty corners, quiet camera movement, and James Newton Howard's score make absence visible; Haley Joel Osment and Bruce Willis assemble trust through pauses and deliberate listening rather than exposition.
Major award wins
No verified wins in this six-institution crosswalk.
Awards are reference metadata only · zero points in 40/40/20
Good for
Film Club
Descriptive guidance derived from rating, genre, runtime, mood, and GCML scores.
Institutional reference ranks
Sight & Sound—IMDb Top 250146AFI 10089
Reference metadata only · not part of the 40/40/20 score
Great Cinema Master List scores
Greatness8.6
Engagement8.9
Ease8.6
English · PG-13 Narrative Feature Mood: Tense & Absorbing
