Buckland-Warren-Puzzle-Films-Complex-Storytelling-Contemporary-Cinema

“Twist Blindness” 83encoded as specific incidents in which (two-way) conversations do not takeplace. By reconstructing the narrative in memory while following it, wemight go beyond the information given and fill in those conversations whichthe narrative does not provide.ConclusionHow should we explain the “twist blindness” of the first-time viewer ofThe Sixth Sense? How should we explain a failure of attention exemplifiedby the revelatory sequence in which Cole reveals that he can “see deadpeople” – dead people who “don’t know they’re dead” – while the camerais focusing in on Malcolm? First, because we classify Malcolm as “alive”from the very outset, it is extremely unlikely that the proposition that“Malcolm might be dead” will be transferred to our long-term memory.Second, because we are continually (re)constructing the narrative andattempting to confirm our first impressions, it is extremely unlikely thatwe will have cause to consider the possibility that “Malcolm might be dead.”For these reasons, the camera is able to focus on Malcolm during Cole’srevelation without either our long-term memory or our ongoing narrative(re)construction sounding any alarm bells. During a first-time viewing ofThe Sixth Sense, we fail to make the connection between Cole’s revelationand Malcolm’s situation effectively because there is nothing in either ourlong-term memory or our ongoing narrative (re)construction for us toconnect Cole’s revelation to.In the fourth and final part of the film, both the primary and secondarystorylines are resolved. The resolution of the primary storyline confirmsour narrative (re)construction. In three consecutive scenes (19 to 21), Coleovercomes his fear by helping the ghost of the young girl Kyra Collins toreveal her murderer, he makes it up with his mother Lynn by revealinghis secret and passing on a message of love from Lynn’s deceased mother,and he gains acceptance from his teacher and peers by taking the starringrole in the school play. It is the resolution of the secondary storyline thatpresents the celebrated narrative twist. In the flashback sequence (22),we see Cole’s revelation, Malcolm and Lynn sitting opposite each other,and Malcolm and Anna having dinner. When Malcolm says goodbye to thesleeping Anna in the closing scene (23), our surprise at the twist, and ouradmiration for Shyamalan’s ingenuity, may be tempered by a certain skepticism.Considering the characteristics of reconstructive memory, it is