Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
I got this from a first-time spy, someone who may be attending more screenings for AICN in the future. He's seen a couple of films at test screenings recently, and of all the ones he mentioned, I was most curious in his reaction to Terry Zwigoff's upcoming adaptation of the wonderful Daniel Clowes comic GHOST WORLD. Here's what he wrote back with:
I saw Terry Zwigoff’s previous film CRUMB a long time ago. I don’t remember a whole lot from that film, but I remember it being quirky, but interesting.
GHOST WORLD holds a similar tone. Although it is based on the comic book of the same name by Daniel Clowes, I will avoid comparing it to the comics, which should be an easy task considering I’ve never read them.
We were told that the film was already completed, which makes a preview screening curiously useless I would think. Perhaps they were trying to gauge the size of a release they should provide the movie. I don’t know.
Thora Birch’s previous films run the gamut from highly respected Oscar winners (American Beauty) to films universally panned by critics and audiences alike (Dungeons and Dragons). In GHOST WORLD she plays Enid, a naïve girl about to graduate high school, trying to find her place in life. Scarlett Johansson(The Horse Whisperer) plays Rebecca, her best friend, who is decidedly more preppy than Enid.
The fifties music at the top of the film sets the tone. The girls entertain themselves by following people they find interesting. Cute eighteen-year-old stalkers. They follow a couple they deem “satanists”, and call men in the singles listings to entertain themselves. Through this hobby, Enid makes friends with Seymour (played to perfection by Steve Buscemi) when she finds they have the same taste in music. Enid decides to make it her mission to find Seymour a girlfriend; all the while she grows distant from Rebecca, and struggles to make her art teacher (Illeana Douglas) appreciate her view on the world.
The film is filled with colorful performances in a wide range of strange ancillary characters. The direction is solid, and the tempo is paced slowly, but not too slowly, giving it a surreal feeling. While the film is not for everyone, and will most likely receive a small release, I would expect the majority of critics would appreciate the film. The more I think back on the movie, the more I appreciate it. I don’t see it getting a large release, but those few who go to see it should enjoy. You’ll laugh, you might cry, and if you’ve ever felt like a stranger in the world, you’ll relate. I know I could.
