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74 Daniel Barratt(b) Establishing the apparent relationship betweenMalcolm and LynnHaving successfully established that Malcolm is apparently alive and well,the film must then establish Malcolm’s apparent relationship with Cole’smother Lynn. The foundations of this relationship are put in place by tworelatively low-key scenes. Consider the scene in the church when Malcolmofficially introduces himself to Cole (2). Malcolm’s first words are: “It’s okayCole, my name is Dr Malcolm Crowe. We were supposed to meet todaybut I missed our appointment, I’m sorry.” This piece of dialogue immediatelyactivates the schema for a certain type of institutional relationship:it is reasonable to assume that every viewer will have a fundamental understandingof the relationship between a doctor and a patient. Similarly, thefollowing scene is set in the home of Lynn and Cole (3). Lynn dresses forwork and serves Cole his breakfast at the kitchen table. This scenario bringsanother type of institutional schema into play: one could argue that thebond between a mother and her child is the most fundamental of all humanrelationships. I would suggest that both the doctor–patient and mother–child relationships are so deeply rooted in the viewer’s psychology thatwhen it comes to establishing the apparent relationship between Malcolmand Lynn (doctor–parent), Shyamalan does not need to use any dialoguewhatsoever: the viewer’s schematic knowledge and inferential capacities effectivelydo the work. Indeed, the inference in question is almost a transitiveone with Cole acting as the all-important link: Malcolm is significantly relatedto Cole; Cole is significantly related to Lynn; therefore, Malcolm is significantlyrelated to Lynn.In light of this, all that Shyamalan needs to do is to briefly present Malcolmand Lynn in the same frame in order to create the impression that theyhave met each other. The key scene (4) is the subject of the second flashbackat the film’s conclusion: an establishing shot presents Malcolm andLynn sitting down opposite each other, both apparently waiting for Coleto arrive home from school (Figure 3.8). From this point, Shyamalan usesthe stylistic technique of editing to keep Malcolm and Lynn separate.When Cole arrives through the doorway mid-frame, both Malcolm andLynn turn round. As Lynn rises to greet Cole, the film cuts forward to athree-quarter shot of the two engaging in light-hearted banter, Lynn jokingthat she has won the Pennsylvania Lottery and Cole joking that he hit agrand slam to win a kickball game at school. This exchange is inter-cut withtwo cutaway shots of Malcolm, showing Malcolm’s reaction of amusement.