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In an inspired opening, Ghost World begins with a montage from a 1960s Bollywood video and voyeuristic shots of the neighbours of the eponymous suburban town. This is teenage angst taken beyond the realms of the pure sexual frustration of American Pie, onto the level of displacement.

Just what lies in store for two girls after school has finished? Enid (Thora Birch) and Rebecca (Scarlett Johansson) mull over life, love and the weird and wonderful inhabitants of the small town of Ghost World. But while Rebecca attempts to "grow up" by getting a job and an apartment, Enid is forced into summer Art School and begins a friendship with the sad loner Seymour (Steve Buscemi), who has more of a relationship with his seven-inches than the human race. The girls' relationship begins to strain and as the story progresses Rebecca appears in both Enid’s life and the film, less and less.

Based on the comics by Daniel Clowes, which have themselves been acclaimed as a modern-day Catcher in the Rye, and directed by Terry (Crumb) Zwigoff, Ghost World is a beautiful exploration of the confusions and choices faced by young adults. Although criticised for being slow in places, the film's pace adds extra realism to its exposure of the constraints of small-town life. The poignant ending leaves us unsure about what’s next for Enid; though from what we’ve learnt through the course of the film, going it alone and making big decisions is the only way to reap the rewards in an uncertain life.

On the DVD: Ghost World on disc comes with a standard range of special features, including a photo gallery (mainly of Birch in her distinctive costumes), trailers and one subtitle option: English for the hard of hearing. In the section entitled "Daniel Clowes’ Ghost World" there's a tour of his old neighbourhood, the inspiration for the comic, in which the author states he never made anything up; a self portrait and Clowes talking about the process of turning his comic into a film--which is about as close as you will get on this disc to a commentary. --Nikki Disney

Release Date: May 20, 2002
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