Thriller Generic Conventions ‘The Sixth Sense’

The Sixth Sense is a psychological thriller set in the late 90’s. The narrative centres around a boy who realises that he can see dead people and an equally troubled child psychologist Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) who tries to help him. Child psychiatrist Malcolm Crowe is confronted one night by his former patient Vincent Gray who he failed to help. After Vincent shoots Crowe in the stomach and kills himself, Crowe can't stop thinking about it. A few months later he is hired to help a troubled boy named Cole Sears, who has many of the same problems Vincent had. But can he? The boy is seen as the protagonist of the film because he is in danger of the dead people he sees. The small, 9 year old boy is a courageous character. However, he is bullied throughout school due to his sixth sense. We witness this bullying when Cole is called names by school peers such as a ‘freak’. The title of the film is ‘The sixth sense’. The title refers to this ability being an extra sense above the five ordinary. It grabs the attention of possible future viewers and leaves them curious as to why this is the title and what the film is about. The audience is placed in the ambiguous position of not knowing whether this boy will survive.

The micro areas combine effectively to build up suspense for the audience. For example, camerawork and mise-en-scene emphasises the enigma in the opening of the film by showing mysterious props. An example of this is the wine cellar in the basement where the first scene of the film is set. The dark lighting and cold air portrays an enigma which is later explained as the presence of a ghost. The sound within the film creates a tense atmosphere for the audience through its eerie quality. The first example the audience see of this is the music used to open the film. Without the music, the suspense and atmosphere would not be built up. Dialogue is mainly used throughout the film, however when an enigma is discovered dark and eerie music usually starts. This adds to the intense narrative to build the audience’s suspense. The theme of identity is evident within ‘The Sixth Sense’. Crowe assumes that the small boy Cole who sees dead people is merely mentally disturbed like his former patient Vincent who underwent the same experience. Themes of seeing, reflection and mirroring are common in thriller openings, and ‘The Sixth Sense’ is an example of this. Within the first five minutes of the opening sequence this theme is portrayed as a couple look into a reflective award. In conclusion, ‘The sixth sense’ conforms to many of the generic thriller conventions as mentioned above. Without these conventions, the film would not be classed as an effective thriller. For example, if the title was irrelevant, the audience might misunderstand the narrative of the film.