Ghost World (2001)

With only the plan of moving in together after high school, two unusually devious friends seek direction in life. As a mere gag, they respond to a man's newspaper ad for a date, only to find it will greatly complicate their lives.

Director:

Terry Zwigoff

Writers:

Daniel Clowes (comic book), Daniel Clowes

Stars:

Steve Buscemi, Thora Birch, Scarlett Johansson

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 28 wins & 55 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
Rini Bell	...	Graduation Speaker
T.J. Thyne	...	Todd

Storyline

This is the story of Enid and Rebecca after they finish the high school. Both have problems relating to people and they spend their time hanging around and bothering creeps. When they meet Seymour who is a social outsider who loves to collect old 78 records, Enid's life will change forever.

---

Plot Keywords:

older man young girl relationship | older man younger woman | mini skirt | short skirt | female best friends | 

---

Taglines:

Accentuate the negative.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language and some sexual content

Details

Country:

USA UK Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 September 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Prízracný svet

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$98,791, 22 July 2001, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$6,217,849

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,543,544

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

This was the first film to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay based on a Graphic Novel or Comic Book.

---

Goofs

In the scene where Enid surprises Seymour at Cook's Chicken, the boom is clearly visible in one angle, reflected in the window behind Seymour's head.

---

Quotes

[Seymour is trying to interest a fellow collector in a record he's selling]
Paul, the Fussy Guy - Record Collector: It has a enlarged centre hole and a hair-crack.
Seymour: But the crack is so tight it's completely inaudible.
Paul, the Fussy Guy - Record Collector: But a tight hair-crack is just that - a crack. I don't collect cracked records. I only pay premium on mint records. Seymour, you know that. Please.
[he walks away. Enid, who has been listening, goes up to Seymour]
Enid: So what was all that about enlarged holes and tight cracks?

---

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.

---

Connections

References 9½ Weeks (1986)

---

Soundtracks

Happy Shoppers
Written by Dick Walter
Courtesy of APM

User Reviews

Entertaining but slow-paced towards the end.

Ghostworld was for the most part a fine movie to watch and the performances were certainly more than up-to-standard even though the deliberate under-acting was sometimes a bit overdone…(does that make sense?).

Much better than the average blockbuster but not completely without flaw. Because partially due to the lack of story development after the first half, it seems to linger on longer than it should have. This left me feeling that this movie had already made its point earlier on.

Having said that, we still have a worthwhile movie. For me mainly because of the dark and timeless atmosphere which is played upon beautifully by Buscemi, Birch and Johansson. A nice satire about hatefulness towards people and the changes in life and the way we can either try to avoid it or reconcile with, knowing that the change will ultimately come just the same. Add to this beautiful cinematography, some good laughs and eye-pleasing costumes and you have Ghost World.

Save this one for a rainy evening with a nice bottle of wine or two. But if you don't get sucked in the story after 15 minutes or so, you may want to consider popping in another one 'cause it won't go anywhere else.

7/10