Truly a must see!

I was aware of one of the most important facts of this movie beforehand and that was just a little disappointing but it certainly didn't ruin the movie for me. Even though I had prior knowledge, it still came as somewhat of a shock to me because of the way it came to be.

The movie begins with Dr. Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) and his wife preparing to retire for the night. When they enter the bedroom, she notices that the window has been broken. They notice the bathroom light is on and slowly creep to the door to investigate. There, they find a young man who has stripped to his briefs, quivering like a scared little child. Eventually, they discover that this young man was a former patient of Dr. Crowe years ago, as a child. He felt that Dr. Crowe had not properly treated him and he also felt that Dr. Crowe had not helped him rid himself of the demons, so to speak, that plagued his childhood. The doctor tries to reason with the young man but to no avail. He becomes irrational, fires a gun at the doctor and then turns the gun on himself committing suicide.

Fastforward to later that Fall....Dr. Crowe is sitting on a park bench when he sees Cole (Haley Joel Osment) coming out of his apartment. Cole is a troubled young boy who eventually becomes a new patient of Dr. Crowe.

They finally meet and the doctor begins talking with him. Dr. Crowe is a child psychologist, by the way. He tries to get the child to open up to him during several meetings but Cole is very withdrawn and even more reluctant to trust him or anyone else, for that matter. The doctor initially assumes that the problems and behaviors Cole exhibits stems from the fact that his parents are divorced and the father has no interest in the child.

Eventually, Cole does open up to the doctor after he is hospitalized following a very traumatic "encounter" and confesses his big secret, "I see dead people". Upon hearing this revelation, Dr. Crowe determines that Cole is far more troubled than he originally thought. Of course he can't see dead people, or can he? I can't tell you if Dr. Crowe comes to believe this child and his "secret" because these are the only details I'm choosing to reveal.

It really is a must see but I recommend that when you watch it, pay extremely close attention. If you blink your eyes you may miss a very important detail or piece to the puzzle, so to speak. This movie can be difficult to keep up with at times. It is definitely one that will keep you on your toes.

I pretty much knew the end result beforehand but I have to admit I was still somewhat puzzled. This is the type of movie that you talk about directly afterward, second guessing your own opinions and trying to piece it all together. Personally, I second guessed all of my thoughts and speculations throughout the movie and for a couple of days thereafter.

It's not necessarily scary but there was one scene that made me scream. It wasn't so much that the scene was that scary; it was just so suspenseful and caught me totally off-guard. Oh, and I did refuse to lay down unless a light could be left on that night. I think the theme of the movie was what I feared more than anything.

Bruce Willis is outstanding, as always, and Haley Osment is adorable, as usual. You really feel for this young child with each mentally agonizing ordeal he endures. Osment is one of my favorite child actors of all time. He always does such a magnificent job and is so very convincing.

I would recommend this movie to anyone, age 15/16 and up. Anyone younger than this may not be able to comprehend or keep up with all the twists and turns. This movie may even terrify very small children.

If you haven't seen this movie yet, be sure to make it your next choice. I don't think you will be disappointed!