Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

The Sixth Sense 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 24, 2024

Hey, remember when M. Night Shyamalan was being hailed as one of the most inventive filmmakers working, one whose brilliant handling of a supposedly mind blowing "twist" elevated him to the very top echelons of the American movie industry? No? Well, let's face it, maybe that lack of memory is understandable, given that Shyamalan's star has fallen pretty precipitously since the heady days of The Sixth Sense, and without sounding too cruel about it, it might be jokingly stated that those inclined to see dead things (as opposed to people) may have caught a glimpse of Shyamalan's career over the past few years. Another joke might be evident, at least with regard to my frequent (hopefully obviously comic) assessment that Lionsgate in particular devises its 4K UHD releases as a vehicle to offload remainders of 1080 discs, because in that same vein, the 1080 disc in this release kind of incredibly seems to be the very same 2008 release linked to below.

The Sixth Sense was a very early 1080 Blu-ray release from Disney / Buena Vista, and Martin Liebman's The Sixth Sense Blu-ray review of that now "ancient" outing provides an apt plot summary as well as Marty's assessments of the technical merits and supplements.

The Sixth Sense 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 disc in this package, which, while obviously pretty old now, I still feel probably gives an overall better representation of the palette in particular than had I sourced screenshots directly off the 4K UHD disc, which by necessity would have been downscaled to 1080 and SDR.

The Sixth Sense is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Disney / Buena Vista with an HEVC / H.265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1.85:1. There are some definite pluses to this new 4K version when stacked up against the now "ancient" 1080 release, and I'd personally put palette toward the top of that list. HDR adds some pretty significant new highlights to things, evident almost from the get go in the somewhat more crimson looking scene after the shooting (pay attention to the church door, among other production design elements), and there's actually almost a flushed pink quality to some of the flesh tones in that sequence in particular as well as later scenes. Fine detail tends to be exceptional, aided by Shyamalan's emphasis on close-ups, to the point that to my eyes you can actually make out some of the makeup on Willis' face in some scenes. I was frankly less impressed with the consistency of grain resolution and appearance. A lot of this presentation offers a really nicely tight grain field, but there are several moments scattered throughout the film where things become considerably rougher looking, with mottled, splotchy yellow clumps of grain, typically against some brighter backgrounds, as in the early terrifying bathroom scene, but also some later material with Cole and Lynn in their kitchen. My 4K score is 4.25.

The Sixth Sense 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 4K UHD disc replaces the 1080 disc's LPCM 5.1 track with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, but I think you'd be hard pressed to notice any huge differences between the two. As Marty alludes to in his review of the 1080 disc's audio, the surround activity here is often really pretty subtle, and yet it's still noticeable, and in fact part of what may add to its effectiveness is how some ambient environmental effects almost tend to creep into the side or rear channels virtually subliminally. James Newton Howard's really evocative score is also nicely spacious (I kind of love how he goes from what I've joked is "John Adams played at 16 RPM" minimalism to screeching Bernard Herrmann Psycho strings to more elegiac and gorgeous melodies, all of which sound great here). Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English, French and Spanish subtitles are available.

The Sixth Sense 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The 4K UHD disc has no on disc supplements. The 1080 disc in this package repeats the supplements Marty covers in some detail in his review. To make things convenient, I've listed those supplements on the 1080 disc here, though I advise those interested in any or all of these to read Marty's more in depth coverage. I'm noting a really weird anomaly that I encountered when playing this disc in my PC drive, with the caveat that I was using PowerDVD, which has always been a glitchy program for me, and with the additional assurance that everything looked and played fine in all of my standalone players. That said, when I tried to access the Publicity material playing the disc in my PC disc drive, I had a very peculiar thing happen where there was a bizarre set of two superimposed menus of Publicity Material combined with Deleted Scenes. When playing the disc in my disc drive, I simply could not access the Publicity material, anything I attempted to click on brought up the Deleted Scenes. With that warning aside, here are the supplements on the 1080 disc:

• Reflections from the Set (SD; 39:14)


• Between Two Worlds (SD; 37:21)


• Moving Pictures: The Storyboard Process (SD; 14:52)


• Music and Sound Design (SD; 6:38)


• Reaching the Audience (SD; 3:31)


• Rules and Clues (SD; 5:59)


• Deleted Scenes (SD; 14:55)


• Publicity

  Theatrical Trailer (SD; 2:18)

  
  

  TV Spot (SD; 00:31)

  
  

  TV Spot (SD; 00:17)

Additionally, a digital copy is included and packaging features a slipcover.

The Sixth Sense 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

As my wife will probably admit with a sigh and a roll of her eyes, I not only guessed the "big twist" of The Sixth Sense from the moment where it actually happens in the story (as opposed to when it's ultimately revealed), I of course announced it to her, just so my annoying genius could be properly noted. By this point, though, I doubt there are many left who don't know this first of several ostensible Shyamalan surprises. The facility of Shyamalan in this film cannot be denied, and The Sixth Sense is interesting in that it provides perhaps even more engagement on a second or even third viewing, after all the veritable cats are out of the bag. This 4K UHD version sports generally great technical merits, and while a remastered 1080 disc with new supplements probably would have been preferable, at least this package includes the older 1080 release. Recommended.