Ghost World (2001)

Enid and Rebecca are social outsiders who, after graduating from high school, play a mean prank on a middle-aged geek.

Director:

Terry Zwigoff

Writers:

Daniel Clowes (comic book), Daniel Clowes,

Stars:

Thora Birch, Scarlett Johansson, Steve Buscemi

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 34 wins & 31 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Thora Birch	...	Enid
Scarlett Johansson	...	Rebecca
Steve Buscemi	...	Seymour
Brad Renfro	...	Josh
Illeana Douglas	...	Roberta Allsworth
Bob Balaban	...	Enid's Dad
Stacey Travis	...	Dana
Charles C. Stevenson Jr.	...	Norman
Dave Sheridan	...	Doug
Tom McGowan	...	Joe
Debra Azar	...	Melora
Brian George	...	Sidewinder Boss
Pat Healy	...	John Ellis
Honorine Bell	...	Graduation Speaker (as Rini Bell)
T.J. Thyne	...	Todd

Storyline

This is the story of Enid and Rebecca after they finish the high school. Both have problems to be related with people and they spend their time hanging around and bothering creeps. When they met Seymour who is a social outsider who loves to collect old vinyl records, the life of Enid will change forever.

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Plot Keywords:

high school | friend | art class | diner | graduation | 

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Taglines:

They're high school graduates, and the world's got hell to pay!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language and some sexual content

Details

Country:

USA UK Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 October 2001 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Prízracný svet

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£133,188 (UK) (16 November 2001)

Gross:

$6,200,756 (USA) (1 February 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Artists, Granada Film Productions, Jersey Shore

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 'Coon Chicken Inn' poster that Enid submits as her final piece for art class was painted by Robert Crumb.

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Goofs

The broken sculpture gains and loses pieces at random.

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Quotes

Masterpiece Video Clerk: [smiling] Hello, welcome to Masterpiece Video. How may I help you this afternoon, sir?
Masterpiece Video Customer: I'm looking for a copy of 8 1/2.
Masterpiece Video Clerk: Is that a new release, sir?
Masterpiece Video Customer: No, it's the classic Italian film.
Masterpiece Video Clerk: Yes, sir. I'll just check that on the computer for you, sir.
[he types on the computer]
Masterpiece Video Clerk: Yes, here it is. 9 1/2 Weeks with Mickey Rourke. That would be in the Erotic Drama section.
Masterpiece Video Customer: No, not 9 1/2, 8 1/2. The Fellini film?
[the clerk looks at him blankly]

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Crazy Credits

After all the credits roll, there's another take of the scene where Seymour (Steve Buscemi) gets attacked by Doug in the minimart. Only this time, Buscemi's characer easily wins the fight, choking Doug with his own weapon, and stomps out triumphantly. He finishes with a bunch of Mr. Pink type dialogue.

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Connections

Referenced in Veronica Mars: Not Pictured (2006)

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Soundtracks

"Going My Way"
Written by Jeff Richman
Courtesy of Megatrax Production Music, Inc.

User Reviews

Waking Life

"We graduated from high school. How totally amazing", says a sarcastic Enid Coleslaw (Thora Birch, in the best performance of her career), at the beginning of "Ghost World". Enid and her best friend, Rebecca (a 15 year-old Scarlett Johansson) discuss how much they longed for their graduation day, and when it finally came, it wasn't as cheerful as they were expecting. While Rebecca finds a job and tries to move on, Enid doesn't know what to do with her life and spends most of her time with Seymour (Steve Buscemi, playing the most humane variation of all the 'losers' he's been playing his whole life, and that's why he's so great at it), a lonely older man whose biggest pleasure is collecting rare, old records.

The more I watch "Ghost World", the more I like it. This is a very special, really beautiful film, that speaks to the heart. It's both hilarious (really one of the funniest films I've ever seen - Enid's yard sale, her first day of work at a movie theater, just to name a couple of favourite scenes, crack me up every time) and moving, with a bittersweet feel to it that's underlined by David Kitay's musical theme. Terry Zwigoff's ("Crumb") script, co-written by Daniel Clowes based on his own comic books, has a remarkable respect for its characters, most of them adorable and pathetic at once - including Josh (Brad Renfro), a boy Enid and Rebecca love to mess around with. One week ago, when I was re-watching this movie with some friends who had never seen it, we commented on how miserable Josh is - and how sad it was to hear about Renfro's premature death a few days later.

If you ever felt lost in your own world, not knowing what do with your life, you're gonna relate to this film. The feeling I get from it is a little similar to THAT other film with Scarlett Johansson, the sublime "Lost in Translation". For me, any movie as sincere and well crafted as "Ghost World" and "Lost in Translation" is a classic, and deserves a spot on my all-time favourites' list. 10/10.