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Notes -
Cole knew, Malcolm himself did not. Thus the whole narrative structure upon which the film is based, the "gotcha" moment at the end, etc. For Cole to have announced it to him (and thus revealed to us all his prescience) would have ended the film before it started. Even at the end he tells Malcolm ghosts only see what they want to see and sometimes don't know they're dead. Cole is and has always been aware of all this. I agree with Raiders in that I cannot fathom anyone not thinking this.
The movie still works if both Malcom and Cole don't know he's dead. I don't see why the movie should hinge on Cole knowing anything about Malcom being dead or not.
Well there's obviously nuance or we wouldn't disagree. I'd argue the following support Cole knowing all along: The title itself; the repeated interactions where Cole is never once confused or unaware that he is interacting with a spirit; his repeated glances at his mother to see how/if she sees Malcolm (which I believe is why many viewed the film more than once, to check if Malcolm ever interacted with the mother as they had assumed); and finally their last interaction ("I'm not going to see you anymore, am I?") which suggests that now that Malcolm has made his peace, he will "move on" in a way that Cole has always expected him to do, but now knows is upon them.
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