I'd rather be The Devil
To be that woman, man
I'd rather be The Devil
To be that woman, man
Aw, nothin' but The Devil
Changed my baby's mind
-From Skip James' "Devil Got My Woman," which hypnotizes Enid, the heroine of Ghost World

I'm not so arrogant as to assume you've made this observation or even care, but I know that my reviews of late have read like obligations. Back in early December of 2001, I finally had a viable opportunity to catch Terry Zwigoff's Ghost World, a film that kept just-missing me up to that point; although I was prepared to adore, nay, love it, having long ago been wiled by the work of all involved (quite literally, every key participant), I had not braced for--why would/how could I?--the devastating impact that Ghost World had on me. The film swept up my passion and has hoarded it since, meaning that I have stared catatonically at pictures good (Groundhog Day) and bad (The Glass House) for almost two months now and written about them in much the same manner.

I tuned into the Golden Globe Awards for the first time in years last Sunday just to watch Thora Birch--who arrived at the ceremony wearing a pretty pendant she designed for a charity auction--pick up the Best Actress (in a Musical or Comedy) trophy she richly deserved. But when her category came up and the nominees were rehashed, Nicole Kidman's name (for Moulin Rouge) received a pre-emptive ovation so loud that I realized Ms. Birch was doomed. I've never put much stock in the Globes, but for better or worse, they are some kind of Oscar barometer. It is a shame that Thora's authentic, soulful (the exultant adjectives are limitless, really) work in Ghost World was overshadowed in a national race* by a show of sympathy for Divorce poster girl Kidman. Lest we forget that Birch made it through child stardom in one piece. *Birch has thus far been honoured for Ghost World by the Toronto Film Critics Association

The film opens on a shot of power lines. The camera then launches into a voyeuristic montage, crawling past windows and stopping to look through each one. We are eventually spying on the bespectacled, raven-haired Enid in her bedroom as she dances uninhibitedly to a rock 'n' roll number from a '60s Bollywood musical. Power lines resurface in Ghost World's final image, hanging umbillical cords that connect otherwise disparate individuals/souls the world over--we are all but enwombed in our living rooms, our bedrooms, our restaurant booths. Ghost World deals in the supernatural insomuch as it says that we are most of us enigmas afraid to establish meaningful contact with one another. Seymour illustrates this sad notion by chastening an attractive woman for misidentifying ragtime as the blues; the bubble around him is impenetrable, even when a base desire is there. Isolation is the price a person pays for filling up the holes in his or her knowledge and experience with arcana. Enid's positive reaction to his "old stuff" encourages Seymour to befriend her; and he is the rare man Enid regards, though her immaturity thwarts the compassion she tries to show him.

Zwigoff, the man responsible for bringing Crumb, that searing portrait of cartoonist R. Crumb and his artistically-inclined siblings (Crumb's daughter Sophie sketched Enid's drawings), to the screen, enjoys ambiguity, but he frames his subjects so purposefully that we want to interpret a character's actions rather than throw up our hands in frustration. (This is especially true of Ghost World's delicious open ending.) He also knows from the artistic temperament: Enid is seen in one sequence fanatically blotting out the eyes and teeth on a magazine photo with Liquid Paper--I must say, I've never used white-out for anything but. Perhaps Seymour and Enid bond because they're both artists, if art, as Crumb implied, is 99% fixation. In university, I used to spend my lunch-hours defacing newspaper ads with an Enid figure, and goddamnit, did I take that weird, wonderful communion for granted.

By now you've read a lot of praise for Ghost World, and that the film is finding not only an audience but also a following pleases me immensely, yet I feel as though I'm leading a private band in my manic-depressive reaction to this ostensible comedy. The first fiction film by documentarian Zwigoff, Ghost World follows the exploits of two bitchy, handsome teenaged girls and one middle-aged loser, and its sophisticated humour, combined with good pacing and a touch of sentiment, render it empirically "entertaining." But Zwigoff, adapting the terrific graphic novel by Daniel Clowes (he and Clowes wrote the screenplay together), is operating in a very specific milieu: these girls encountering this guy and drifting apart in this limbo town of apartment complexes and franchise start-ups leaves me haunted when the minutes drag. The film, more observedly than you can imagine, poses the dreams and disappointments of aimless small town rejects for melancholy evaluation.

MGM's DVD release of Ghost World will let down those fans of the film hoping for a peek behind the curtain of the production. That said, don't be discouraged from adding this disc to your collection--the picture quality is stunning, and that's what counts. Presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen, the transfer boasts of a clean source print, vibrant colours, and crisp shadow detail. The Dolby Digital 5.1 mix surrounds us with David Kitay's unsettling piano-and-strings score and maintains perfect sound levels for the dialogue. "Ghost World: A Comic Comes to Life" is a nice featurette in which Zwigoff tells us that his wife has a mad crush on Buscemi and various cast and crew hash out the meaning of the film's title. Four (out of apparently several) negligible deleted/alternate scenes (two are improvisations involving Doug (Dave Sheridan), the shirtless, abusive convenience store customer), the full clip from 1965's Gumnaam (the song "Jaan Rehechaan Ho"), a Ghost World soundtrack promo, and trailers for Ghost World and The Princess Bride and The Terminator Special Editions round out the DVD's meagre, if appreciated, assortment of extras.-Bill Chambers

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DVD VITALS:
Running Time
111 minutes
MPAA
R
Aspect Ratio(s)
1.85:1 ONLY, 16x9-enhanced
Languages
English DD 5.1
CC
Yes
Subtitles
English, French, Spanish
DVD-9
Region One
MGM

Buy the GHOST WORLD poster at Moviegoods (click on image)

Buy the soundtrack!

Buy the graphic novel!

Buy the screenplay!

What's coming out on DVD? Check the release calendar

Published: January 25, 2002

GHOST WORLD MADE OUR TOP 10 OF 2001