Ghost World

About the movie

Best friends Enid and Rebecca have just graduated from high school, although Enid has to take a summer school art class, which she failed during the regular school year, to graduate officially. Their plan since seventh grade has been not to go to college, but rather move in together after graduating, which now entails them getting jobs to pay for that independence. As Enid is constantly drawing things which she witnesses in her day-to-day life in her notebook for her own pleasure, that art class failing grade is only one demonstration of the contempt both Enid and Rebecca have for anything that is mainstream, which includes the structure of school and most of their classmates. Their "people", as Enid confirms, are the freaks, sickos and weirdos of society. Just for fun, they decide to respond to an "I Saw You" personal ad to see what loser placed the ad, who, he believes in attending the date, would be stood up by the woman for who he is looking. He is forty-something Seymour, who would admit that he beats to his own drummer and too cannot tolerate being with people who he just doesn't understand. Although Enid does not admit to Seymour that she and Rebecca were the ones that answered the ad, Enid becomes his friend based on their shared sensibilities. As Enid and Rebecca move on to the post-graduation phase of their lives, Enid slowly begins to alienate all around her, including Rebecca and possibly Seymour as she subversively begins to direct things in his life to thwart anything that is remotely mainstream. Enid believes that life as she knows it will be all right as long as she has one touchstone which to return, that touchstone which may not be as permanent as she believes.—Huggo