“Ghost World” Review | The Truth of Never Growing Up
Spoilers beware.
Terry Zwigoff’s 2001 film Ghost World is unlike any other teen black comedy you’ve ever seen. There’s no gross-out humor, no over-exaggeration of teenage angst, and no typically happy ending in sight. Based on the Daniel Clowes comic of the same name, Ghost World is far bleaker and more melancholic than one might expect by going off of just the poster. There’s humor to be found, don’t get the wrong idea. But at its core, this Thora Birch- and Scarlett Johansson-starring dramedy is about more than just being a simple teen comedy.
Best friends Enid and Rebecca are now high school graduates and are preparing to venture out into the world of adulthood, setting their sights on summer jobs and a potential apartment for the both of them. One day, the two girls stumble upon a personal ad in the papers from a man named Seymour and decide to prank him, pretending to be the woman he’s writing to. What starts off as a simple prank becomes a relatable tale of identity and the struggles of growing up, as Enid’s growing connection with the middle-aged Seymour forces her to confront her future goals, her bonds with the people around her, and whether or not adulthood is all that it’s cracked-up to be.
The impact of Ghost World comes from Terry Zwigoff’s melancholic direction, wallowing in the banal and…
