The Sixth Sense

#143 at time of writing.

To say that this is M. Night Shyamalan's best film would not be telling the whole truth. Far more accurate would be to say that this is his only remotely good film.

Yet it is a very good film. It has all the hallmarks of his worst stinkers - e.g. schmaltzy monsters, a tendency towards over-earnest cheesiness, an excess of focus on plot for the sake of the twist - yet somehow manages to dodge between the cracks and end up being a satisfying and very touching masterpiece.

Perhaps he should stick to being a writer, and let better directors realise his work - or the other way around. (This was a spec script of his, one twelve released films that he's written as of 2013, ten of which he directed. And one of which is any good. Did I say that already?)

The story is about a child who claims, "I see dead people" (the American Film Institute's #44 movie quote of all time), and the skeptical but kind child psychologist who tries to treat him. Despite trying to avoid spoilers, I heard a little about the twist ending, and for years I dismissed it as sounding too similar to The Others. When I finally got around to seeing it, I was pleasantly surprised. I got so into the film that I forgot about the twist, and when it came it had the full effect. Thrilling.

Life of Pi

#227 at time of writing.

A boy (the eponymous Pi) and his family are migrating from Pondicherry to Canada on a large container ship, with all of the animals from their family zoo on board. The ship wrecks and Pi is stranded on a lifeboat in the middle of the Pacific with an injured zebra, a hyena, an orangutan and a fierce Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

The film is an aesthetic marvel, presented absolutely beautifully, just on the right line between reality and fantasy (reminiscent of Amelie - indeed Jean-Pierre Jeunet was attached as director before Ang Lee took over). The animals, for example, feel completely genuine even though they must be largely CGI.

M Night Shyamalan was originally slated to direct. Good thing he didn't because, well, he's rubbish.

Pi's narrative is interwoven with various musings on faith and religion, but the quirky nature of the story obscures any deeper meaning. However, the tale is always compelling, carried along with beauty and charisma until it reaches a crescendo of fantasy and then comes crashing back to reality.

The lifeboat is named Mignonette after the one in the real-life case of R v Dudley and Stephens - a fascinating and macabre story in its own right.

Yann Martel, the author of the Booker prize-winning book, has said he was inspired by a book review of Brazilian author Moacyr Scliar's 1981 novella Max and the Cats, about a Jewish-German refugee who crossed the Atlantic Ocean while sharing his boat with a jaguar.