In ghost world, daniel clowes doesnt romanticize the teenage experience or show teenage girls as sweet and idealistic. In 1989, he created the seminal comic book series, eightball. Seymour, the middleaged oddball whose personal ad inspires a bit of meanspirited mischief on her. As seymour doesnt exist in the comic, he is left free from any comparisons. Gradually and authentically, ghost world depicts an. With the amazing opening scene of the film that is unforgettable and an ending that we are still talking about to this day, ghost world still holds up and is one of the finer comic book films ever made. It follows deadpan snarkers enid coleslaw and rebecca doppelmeyer as they face the summer after high school graduation the character of josh, an alienated friend and quasilove interest of enids and rebeccas, also plays a major role in the comic.
Its directed by terry zwigoff, from a screenplay cowritten by zwigoff and clowes, so the original creator was involved. Enid makes a prank phone call to seymour, pretending to be the woman and inviting him to meet her at a diner. While this sacrifices the melancholy, ghostly tone of the comic, it also allows for sharper contrasts between the garish, fluorescent world of fake fifties diners and multiplexes vs. Once high school is over, one needs to decide where and how they are going to succeed in society. Daniel clowes began his career as an alternative cartoonist in 1985 with the shortlived comic book series lloyd llewellyn. Enid and rebecca spend most of their time making fun of other people they encounter and occasionally playing mean tricks on them. Ghost world is a 2001 black comedy film directed by terry zwigoff and starring thora birch, scarlett johansson, and steve buscemi. Director terry zwigoffs bitingly humorous ghost world successfully nails several brands of droll despair with its lustrous lull and gloom. Seymour is based more than just a little bit on zwigoff himself seymour even has a collection of old 78s similar to zwigoffs. Originally serialized in the pages of the seminal comic book eightball throughout the mid1990s, this quasiautobiographical story the name of one of the protagonists is famously an anagram of the author.
Most notably, the coffee shop patron in the wheelchair is from clowes strip feldman and the tampon in a teacup gag is from a strip called art school confidential. The film follows two cynical high school graduates whose friendship is tested when one of them becomes fascinated by. Hes won a pen award for his body of graphic work and an oscar nomination for the screenplay to. Ghost world directed by terry zwigoff written by daniel clowes 2001 who are you supposed to be, cyndi lauper. Ghost is a fictional comic book superhero who is part of the dark horse comics publication. But on its own terms of truculent alienation and personal. Rediscover the peculiar wonders of ghost world with these surprising facts. Then theres the squeaky third wheel, steve buscemis clueless dork turned enids mentor seymour. The character of seymour appears only as the victim of the girls prank in the comic and was made significant at terry zwigoffs suggestion. Original and terrifically funny, ghost world is a rawedged comedy that. We get distracted with the swath of comic book movies that are around these days, but i think this is one of the most faithful adaptations ive seen going from comic book to liveaction film.
As a mere gag, they respond to a mans newspaper ad for a date, only to find it will greatly complicate their lives. Significantly, seymour doesnt exist in the graphic novel, though elements of his personality can be found in a couple of minor characters. This becomes even more clear when seymour steve buscemi, a much older. Enid and rebecca meet seymour after playing a prank on him, and at first they. Deliciously dry and quirky, ghost world, based on the cult comic book, is like no other teen comedy youve seen before.
With only the plan of moving in together after high school, two unusually devious friends seek direction in life. Gradually and authentically, ghost world depicts an unraveling friendship. Both graphic novel and film are subtle critiques of the effects of consumer capitalism. Ghost world has become a cultural and generational touchstone, and continues to enthrall and inspire readers over a decade after its original release as a graphic novel. Ghost world the comic is a quieter, impressionistic work, with enid. Ghost world russ burlingame 09052017 best comic book adaptations on tv and film scott pilgrim vs. Based on a cult comic book, ghost world is a dark comedy with a unique outlook. Enid is the forceful one, darkhaired, glasseswearing, jewish, highly opinionated, somewhat reckless.
The first among many stories to gain notice were the darkly comic like a velvet glove cast in iron and his savage take on the comics industry, pusseythese were followed in the mid90s by the breakthrough. See more ideas about ghost world, music love and world. Ghost worlds enid birch, a recent highschool grad, is a character who knows what she doesnt want out of life which is not the same thing as saying that shes an alienated teen or a. Ghost world sprang from the mind of daniel clowes, the prolific writer and illustrator who was best known at the time for his longrunning comic book eightball, released from 1989 to 2004 on an. Ghost world is about the awkward time in a teenagers life. Thats the basic premise of the film version of ghost world, based on the comic book of the same name by daniel clowes. Ghost world, the new film adapted from daniel clowes comic book stories of the. Ghost world is an indie comic series by graphic novelist daniel clowes, which.
Ghost world by daniel clowes is a graphic novel about enid coleslaw and rebecca doppelmeyer, two girls who have recently graduated from high school. With steve buscemi, thora birch, scarlett johansson, brad renfro. The town plays a key part in the narrative, as it is constantly mocked and criticized by enid and rebecca. Daniel clowes writes either the funniest sad comics or the saddest funny comics in the world. There are several references to other comic strips written and drawn by daniel clowes. Six pages of a comic book were turned into one of the coolest movies of. As the story progresses, the background changes dramatically. Ghost world, however, is enids story, and director terry zwigoff, making a seemingly natural leap from the world of documentaries he made the great crumb about underground comic book artist robert crumb, strikes a magnificent balancing act in depicting enids essential selfcenteredness without making it difficult to identify with her. Based on the 19931997 comic book of the same name by daniel clowes. Ghost world by terry zwigoff terry zwigoff, thora birch. But enid faces an existential crisis as she spends her summer considering art school, hanging out with an eccentric music buff named seymour, and taking an art class that she needs to earn her diploma. Of course, buscemi is next level here and just owns seymour with the right amount of heart and soul.
Based on the cult comic book series by daniel clowes and directed by terry zwigoff of. Ghost world takes place in an unnamed town filled with shopping malls, fast food restaurants, and urban sprawl. Yet the bleak alienation of the consumerist ghost world isnt pictured as a simple. The movie ghost world was inspired by a graphic novel, with the same name, by daniel clowes. To him ghost world suggests the anomie, accidie and emptiness of our rootless, corporatemanaged culture that the girls mock and against which seymour has created a personal haven. Zwigoff also proves himself with a deliberate visual style that evokes the panels of a comic book though the ghost world comic was in black and white, as well as the industrial wasteland at the outskirts of any. Comic book adaptations have historically been a tossup, some hitting the marks and others failing to capture the spirit of the source material. Another change includes rebecca having a rather diminished role compared to her role in the comic, which gave a more balanced amount of attention to both girls. Ghost world is also refreshing in its refusal to make sweeping, profound statements about social problems. They play a prank on an guy named seymoursteve buscemi through a personals ad in the newspaper. She found an exrental copy in a blockbuster sale bin and picked it up because she thought it looked like something i would like. Its surely the best depiction of teenage eccentricity since. Both strips appeared in a comic book called eightball which also contained ghost world.
Throughout high school, a person is constantly changing the way they appear to others in order to define who they are. Based on the 19931997 comic book of the same name by daniel clowes, with a screenplay cowritten by clowes and zwigoff, the story focuses on the lives of enid birch and rebecca johansson, two teenage outsiders in an unnamed american city. Perhaps the greatest deviation from the textbased ghost world lies in the inclusion of the antisocial seymour played by steve buscemi, a character that does not exist in the comic book, but could potentially be considered an extension of the textbased character bob skeetes who only appears in a few panels. It was a commercial and critical success and developed into a cult classic. Ghost world, the comic book, is a gorgeous, moving piece of work because the girls relationship feels authentic and unforced there is no enforced. Ghost world seems at first like many another teen comedies set during. Ghost world tells the story of enid thora birch and rebecca scarlett. Enid and rebecca are best friends who constantly shout insults at. It first appeared in clowes comic book series eightball and was later published in book form.
By cutting the last line of the comic book, zwigoff brings the film to a close visually and silently. The storyline is based on elisa camerons quest to discover the truth around her evident death. Definitely a darker look at the classic comingofage stories, much of ghost worlds popularity lies in its frank treatment of adolescence and alienation. Terry zwigoffs ghost world, loosely adapted from a novellength comic book by daniel clowes, continues this hopeful trend. Clowes and zwigoff find an ending that is more poetic, more true to the tradition of the classic short story, in which a minor character finds closure that symbolizes the next step for everyone. An analysis and summary of daniel clowes ghost world comic in comparison to the film by the same title. The daniel clowes film ghost world endures for its cynicism and. I received this film as a gift from my mom many years ago. Its about two friends enidthora birch and rebecca scarlett johansson who just graduate high school and dont really know what to do what there lives.
Ghost world is a 2001 black comedy about two recently graduated high school students with devious designs for a lonely man looking for a date, finding some truths about themselves along the way. Rebecca is more passive, a skinny blond wasp according to enid though shes not a wasp, watching with some amusement and more dismay as enid does. His portrayal is raw, cynical, and honest, often hitting the nail on the head. A few nights ago i saw ghost world, the new film adapted from daniel clowes comic book stories of the same name. Ghost world is a series of eight related short stories about their daytoday lives. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of ghost world by daniel clowes. Ghost world features a pair of teenage best friends, enid and becky or. While the film does engage with issues of racism, censorship, and the futility of.
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