Review of Ghost World (2001) by Tom B — 31 Dec 2009

Absolutely one of the most beautifully tragic films I have ever seen. Despite reading the comic a few years ago, I never got round to seeing this in my teenage years. Despite seeming overtly about the female experience of growing up after graduating high school, with all the disappointment and insecurity that entails, the film is really more about the fragility (and, conversely, the strength) of human relationships.

Thora Birch's performance as Enid is absolutely brilliant, typifying all the forced behaviours of late-teenage faux-intellectualism (her defence of the racist art project a perfect example), and Scarlet Johansson brilliantly carries off the role of subdued Rebecca - despite having to put up with her overbearing and scatty friend, the sororal love shines through all the layers of passive-aggressive one-upmanship and insults.

Absolutely one of the best films I have seen in recent memory.