BEFORE: Now back to my regularly-scheduled M.Night Shyamalan marathon - I know, I really should have seen this when it was first released, before someone spoiled the ending for me. But I heard that you need to see this one twice to really understand it, so this will just be like me seeing it for the second time, even though it's my first time. So it's a timesaver, really...
THE PLOT: A boy who communicates with spirits that don't know they're dead seeks the help of a disheartened child psychologist.
AFTER: I'm going to take a bit of a mulligan on this one. I think that after watching 300 movies this year, I'm allowed to tank on one.
In addition to knowing the "gimmick", I had the opportunity to attend a pair of beer dinners this week, back-to-back on Tuesday and Wednesday night. And both were pretty generous with the refills, so over the two nights I did imbibe quite a bit. This is a complex movie that demands attention, and I really shouldn't have tried to watch it after a few beers - I made that mistake with "The Usual Suspects" and never fully understood it (did anyone?)
So, let's just say I'm awarding points for the cleverness of it all, but I wasn't really blown away, for the reasons listed above. Oh, and M. Night appears again in a cameo role - as a smarty-pants doctor, of course...
RATING: 6 out of 10 Jesus figurines
SPOOK-O-METER: 5 out of 10 (creepy boy sees creepy ghosts)
Saw this one in the theater as well, and the ending caught me by suprise, which is unusual. After Bruce got shot, I knew his injuries were fatal, but I thought the director had decided to over look that fact, and ended up catching me.
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