10 Subtle Clues About The Sixth Sense’s Ending Twist

One of cinema’s most iconic twists arrives The Sixth Sense. M. Night Shyamalan’s ghost story is a tense thriller for much of the running time, but it ends with the shocking surprise that Malcolm (Bruce Willis) has been dead the entire film and is one of the ghosts that young Cole ( Haley Joel Osment) sees. The reveal is one of those brilliant twists that immediately makes the viewer want to watch the film again from the beginning to see if they can spot all the hidden clues. The Sixth Sense.

It turns out that Shyamalan fills the film with hints of the truth about Malcolm that, looking back, explain the ending perfectly. Although M. Night Shyamalan has seen his career stagnate thanks to his over-reliance on twisty endings, the one that started it all remains the best, and that’s because he didn’t cheat in telling this story. Malcolm was dead the whole time, and Shyamalan ensured that nothing that happened in the film could erase the effectiveness of the brilliant twist along the way.

10

Malcolm is shot by his patient

The sixth sense advances a year without showing the consequences

The film wastes no time in establishing its frightening tone as the first scene shows Malcolm’s former patient, Vincent Gray (Donnie Wahlberg), breaking into his home and shooting Malcolm for not helping. It may not seem very subtle to the film will include Malcolm’s death in the first few minutesbut it’s a testament to Shyamalan’s talent that he still manages to fool everyone.

The film cuts to a year later, and it appears that Malcolm’s shooting was a life-changing moment that set him on the path to helping Cole. In fact, it was the moment his life ended. The fact that the film never showed the aftermath of the shooting or the tragedy and just immediately skips ahead to the future should have been a tip-off. However, just showing this and moving on felt more like a prelude than a clue to the twist.

9

When Cole shares his secret

“I see dead people”

The moment Cole decides to trust Malcolm and tell him his secret is an iconic scene. This scene features the unforgettable phrase, “I see dead people.” But right after Cole speaks, there’s a close-up of Malcolm as he absorbs the information. While it may be that Malcolm was worried to hear that Cole suffered the same problems as his troubled former patient, viewers can also infer that Cole is trying to tell Malcolm that he is dead, and Malcolm is struggling not to accept this.

In some curiosities, producer Frank Marshall was against the use of the phrase. The producer told Shyamalan that this would reveal the twist and everyone would know when Cole says Malcolm is dead. However, Shyamalan struggled to keep it, and the test audience never caught the twist even after hearing the line, showing how much Shyamalan hid the moment.

8

Ghosts don’t know they’re dead

Cole apparently suggests to Malcolm that he doesn’t know he’s dead

The idea of ​​a film where the main character is dead throughout the story only for him and the audience to discover the truth in the final moments seems impossible to achieve. However, Shyamalan was able to establish rules that made sense, cover the twist and still not alert the audience. When Cole explains to Malcolm that he sees dead people he tells him that these ghosts don’t realize they are dead.

In retrospect, this should have been a huge clue, as it established the possibility of one of the characters being dead. The movie shows Malcolm getting shot when it starts, and the second Cole says he sees dead people and they don’t know what happened to them, maybe Malcolm doesn’t realize it. However, it was a huge clue for audiences and probably wouldn’t work again when Shyamalan started using twists in all of his films.

7

Malcolm can’t open the door

Malcolm only sees what his memories allow

Another rule that Cole establishes is that the dead see this world as they want. They specifically remember how things were when they were alive. This revelation answers one of the small mysteries presented in the film. All over The Sixth Sense, Malcolm is seen trying to open a locked door in his house but can’t find the key.

However, when he realizes he is dead, Malcolm sees that the door is not locked, but is blocked by a table, which Malcolm didn’t realize because it wasn’t there when he was alive. Malcolm cannot see any of the changes made to the house in the year since his death. When it comes to doors, the red handle signifies the entrance to the “other side“which Malcolm is not ready to accept. The color red is used throughout the film to suggest this.”death“moments.

6

Cole helps Malcolm

Cole is there to help the ghosts

Once Malcolm believes Cole’s claims that he can see dead people, Malcolm suggests that the ghosts might be attracted to Cole so he can help them. and thus be alone. Given that Malcolm helps Cole throughout the film, there’s no reason for fans to suspect this fact. However, just before the reveal at the end of the film, Cole gives Malcolm some smart advice about how to connect with his wife again. It is Cole’s help that leads Malcolm to realize the truth.

Throughout the entire film, the audience and Malcolm believe that he is there to help Cole. He knows Cole struggles with the dead he needs to help, and Malcolm wants to make things easier for the young man. However, Malcolm never realizes that between The Sixth Sense hidden meanings, he is one of the ghosts”tormenting” Cole, and the boy is there to help him.

5

No one interacts with Malcolm anymore

Only Cole talks to Malcolm in the sixth sense

All over The Sixth Senseonly one character after the original filming scene speaks to Malcolm or even acknowledges his existence. This fact could apparently make viewers suspect that Malcolm is a ghost. However, Shyamalan stages these scenes in a way that feels relatively normal. Malcolm is seen alone with Cole’s mother, Lynn (Toni Collette), and is with her when she speaks to a doctor. However, none of the characters except Cole speak to him or even acknowledge that he is there.

Shyamalan hides this part of the clue by making it seem like Malcolm is just watching, which is part of his role as a child psychologist. Malcolm overhears everything, allowing him to learn how to help Cole. He also has scenes with his wife, Anna (Olivia Williams), and speaks to her in those scenes. Shyamalan shoots it to make it look like they’re talking, but seeing it back emphasizes that he’s having a one-sided conversation.

4

Malcolm’s Marriage Problems

Malcolm Misinterprets His Marriage Problems

Whenever the film doesn’t follow Malcolm and Cole’s relationship, it examines their troubled relationships at home. Just as Cole struggles to connect with his mother, Malcolm’s wife apparently grew cold towards him. Although the film makes it seem like this is due to Malcolm’s obsession with work, she is distant from him because he is no longer alive.

From ignoring Malcolm to getting close to another man, it’s clear she’s not a loveless wife; she is a grieving widow. This happens in the restaurant when he joins her for dinner and tries to talk to her, but she responds alone. When he sees her at home and can’t understand why she’s changed so much, he sees the pain in her eyes, and it’s at that moment that The Sixth Sense twist finally hits Malcolm and the audience.

3

The restaurant scene

Anna is celebrating her birthday alone after her death

One of the brightest Sixth Sense scenes to remember is when Malcolm and his wife are at the restaurant. Once again, Shyamalan presents it naturally upon first viewing. However, it becomes extremely obvious when the truth is revealed. Malcolm arrives late for dinner, but his wife refuses to speak to him and takes the check before he can. As he tries to explain himself, she whispers sadly: “Happy birthday” before leaving.

Upon realizing that she is the only one at the table, the scene makes a lot of sense. Malcolm believes she is mad at him for putting work ahead of their marriage, specifically on their anniversary. Anna seems sad that their marriage is falling apart. After the revelation that he is dead, it becomes clear that Anna is depressed because she is celebrating her birthday alone – a year after he died and left her a widow.

2

Malcolm wears the same clothes he died in

Malcolm never changes his blue shirt

Although some movie costume options stand out, Malcolm’s clothes The Sixth Sense are common and unpretentious, which Shyamalan clearly intends. After seeing Malcolm in a blue shirt the night he was shot, he is never seen in anything other than that shirt again. He wears coats and several other layers to make everything less obvious, but that shirt is always part of his ensemble. On first viewing, viewers may think that Malcolm dresses boringly.

However, in the final moments of the film, it is revealed that the shirt remains stained with blood from the bullet wound. Malcolm never changes his shirt because he’s wearing the one he died in. Viewers would only notice this fact on repeated viewings, but when a character never changes clothes, it raises red flags, and Shyamalan added this to The Sixth Sense for this purpose.

1

Malcolm’s Wedding Ring

A band of foreshadowing

The Sixth Sense twist comes at the end. The climax begins with Malcolm’s wife dropping her wedding ring on the floor. This revelation occurs when he realizes that he is not wearing the ring. Viewers understand what this means the second the ring hits the ground. While this moment clarifies everything, it was a clue that Shyamalan sprinkled throughout the film. In the film, Malcolm is not seen wearing his wedding ringwhile Anna still uses hers. Despite this, Malcolm wants “save your marriage,” and Anna ignores him.

Although they seem to be having marital problems and she seems to pull away from him, the fact that she wears her ring and he doesn’t wear his doesn’t make sense. Of course, the reason he doesn’t have his is that she’s kept it since his death. The Fallen Ring Finally Reveals M. Night Shyamalan’s Biggest Twist, Ending In The Sixth Sense.

Other films with subtle clues to their twist

Looking back at all the clues and foreshadowing The Sixth Sense It’s part of what makes it such a great movie to watch again. This is a trick pulled off by a number of films that hit audiences with a shocking ending, but also leave the feeling that the pieces were all there to figure out. As audiences come back and watch, it’s a new and fun experience to see all the tips along the way. While The Sixth Sense is one of the best examples, there are some other great films that did the same.

The usual suspects presents a mystery about what happened to a group of criminals who carried out a failed robbery that ended in a massacre and only one survivor, the docile career criminal Verbal Kint. The revelation that Verbal is the criminal mastermind Keyser Soze and his entire story was a fabrication is another iconic twist. However, the film drops several clever hints, such as Verbal possessing the gold lighter that Soze had, Verbal obtaining information in the detective’s office that he uses to lie, and the fact that Soze is Turkish for “talking too much.”

Shutter Island is another brilliant thriller that packs an unforgettable twist. US Marshal Teddy Daniels believes he is investigating the disappearance of an inmate at a psychiatric institution, but Shutter Islandis ending reveals that Teddy is actually an inmate and his doctors are embracing this fantasy in an attempt to cure him. The film suggests this with the nervous guards around Teddy, Teddy’s flashes of intense anger, and a conversation with George Noyce, an inmate who subtly tells Teddy that he is a “mouse in a maze.”

Knives out is a throwback to old-school murder mysteries while also throwing in some unexpected twists on the genre to keep audiences guessing. Although the truth about the murder appears to have been revealed early on, with kind-hearted caretaker Marta apparently responsible, it is revealed that spoiled son Ransom, aka Hugh, is the real killer. The revelation is foreshadowed in several ways, including the dogs barking at Ransom, his great-grandmother commenting on his return, and Marta confusing the phrase “Hugh did it” to “You did that.”

Each of these films is an excellent retelling, but The Sixth Sense still beats them with how subtle and clever his tips are.