The Sixth Sense (Shyamalon, 1999 USA)

The first thing the audience notices when Sixth Sense starts is the non-diegetic music. Instruments used are strings and it creates an eerie and cold feeling right from the start. We the see the opening credits and they are in a blue/white coloured font which reinforce the coldness from the music. The music then reaches a climax and gets louder when the title comes up, the pitch gets higher and makes the audience feel uncomfortable and nervous. There is then a black screen and the actor’s names start to appear. There is then more strings added to the music which makes it become more intense and the tempo increases. This all adds to the tension that is being created. The music then reaches a crescendo of just one string, which creates an eerie gentleness and the feeling that something is not quite right. This all sets the mood and tells you how to feel in anticipation of the first real images.

We then cross fade to a close up of a light bulb coming to life and it is unclear what it is at first. We then meet our first character and the camera is filming her from behind the shelves. This allows a close up of her face so we know what she looks like, and gives the impression that someone is hiding and watching her. We then switch to a low angle shot of her coming down the stairs, this turns from a long shot to a close-up without the camera even moving, she is moving towards it. This makes it seem more natural as if the camera isn’t even there. Later, we see a close-up of her feet running which lets the audience know that she doesn’t feel comfortable or safe down in this cellar alone. This then makes the audience feel uncomfortable and suspect that something is going to happen. When she stops running and turns the camera changes position to a long shot. This allows us to take in the scene with more detail and we see that it is a dark, isolated wine cellar. This makes her look exposed and vulnerable and the audience expect something bad to happen. When we see the women we see that she is wearing a dress, jewellery and heels. This makes her seem even more vulnerable as she doesn't look like she is wearing the right clothes for fighting someone, running away, etc.

There is then a moment of realisation for the character when the camera tracks to her face and we see that she pauses as she hears a noise. This creates alarm for the audience as we sense that someone is there with her, but we can’t see them. We ask the question; what was that noise and who is down there? Because of the position of the camera behind the shelf it obscures our vision of the rest of the cellar and we can’t clearly see if someone is there or not, which creates tension for the audience. This is reinforced by the use of low key lighting and the idea that she is in the 1/3 of the 'rule of thirds' and the other 2/3 are filled with shadows. When we see her visibly shiver and see how scared she is, this makes the audience feel scared and apprehensive too.