ART/WINTER  2002                                                                                                                                                                                            ISSUE 4

RED...it fires the imagination, pg 2
by VSGal
 
 
   RED, in our culture, can be a symbol of blood or death.  In the movie “The Sixth Sense,” written and directed by, M. Night Shyamalan, the color RED is used quite frequently.  Cole can see dead people.  Malcolm tells Cole that churches are sanctuaries to protect us from bad people.  The church has RED doors.  This symbolizes security.  Later on in the movie, Cole’s RED tent is his sanctuary also.  Cole’s RED balloon floats upwards, like a spirit.  In Japan, RED  ink is used traditionally when writing a letter that ends a relationship.  Perhaps the RED balloon floating upwards symbolizes the ending of its relationship with Cole? 
 
Tormented Cole finding sanctuary in his RED tent.

     Cole wears RED as he climbs the stairs towards the light.  Some people say you should wear RED if you are feeling depressed or need energy.  The dead girl gives Cole a RED box to give to her father.  Inside, the videotape is surrounded by RED velvet.  This can be taken many different ways.  RED can symbolize loss, such as the loss of the dead girl’s life.  RED can also mean communication, which is a major characteristic of this movie.  The videotape, and through Cole, were the only ways the dead girl could communicate with her father. 
 

“On Pentecost Sunday, Catholics wear RED to celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit unto the disciples so that they could speak in tongues and communicate with everyone. I noticed in the Sixth Sense that every time an "important" conversation took place, at least one person was wearing RED (or at least surrounded by red),”  – Amelia (from the Hollywood Jesus website).

     As Cole delivers the box to the father, we can see a lady in RED sitting in the background.  The videotape is about her.  RED can also mean danger.  The lady in RED was indeed dangerous, as the father discovers by watching the video. 
  

When Cole confides his secret to his mother, she is wearing a RED sweater.  He is communicating with his mother and showing RED’s meaning of safety.  Cole feels safe with his mother after telling her the truth.  He doesn’t have to hide his secret anymore.  
HALEY JOEL OSMENT & TONI COLLETE in "The Sixth Sense"
       Also, Malcom’s wife is wearing RED at the end of the film.  The truth about Malcom comes out in this scene also.  RED is the color of mourning in South Africa.  Is Malcom’s wife mourning him here?  Perhaps? 
     The color RED  is everywhere, on earth and out in the universe.  Our world and lives would not be the same without this vibrant color.  Could you imagine, just for a moment, a world with no RED?   No matter what the meanings may be, no matter the good or bad symbolism that this color invokes, no matter what happens, I know I must have the color RED in my life.
 
 
 
 

Some of my sources:

http://www.carhops.com/lover's_leap/meaning/red.htm

http://www.sfheart.com/color.html

http://www.hollywoodjesus.com/sixth_sense.htm

http://www.colormatters.com/bubdarc4c-red.html

http://www.expage.com/page/colormeaningseafw

http://www.cs.pdx.edu/~trent/ochs/lyrics/highwayman-orig.html

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