Ghost World
MPAA Rating: R
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Entertainment: +2 1/2
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Content: -3
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Making the difficult transition from teenager to adult can be difficult, a fact that Enid (Thora Birch) discovers too well. Having recently graduated from high school, she and her best friend Rebecca (Scarlett Johansson) have little of their futures planned. So, the coming summer promises to be one of big decisions and self-discovery. In the early summer, the girls decide to play a joke on a man after reading an ad in the personals section of the newspaper. They respond to the ad pretending to be a woman who wants to meet him, then watch as he goes to the meeting place and finds no one. However, the odd-looking man fascinates Enid, so they secretly follow him home. Eventually, Enid finds a way to meet Seymour (Steve Buscemi), and begins a friendship with him that drastically impacts not only her summer, but her life as well. Thora Birchs performance is a stand out in the film filled with a great supporting cast. The inventive directing should also garner a strong following for lovers of independent film.
Despite the title, the film has little to do with the supernatural. Of the movie’s many themes, two stand out. The first centers on finding one’s way in life. Throughout the film, Enid exhibits a cynical attitude about life. But while she makes it appear that she doesn’t care and isn’t affected by the world around her, she clearly wants to find her place in the world. Another prominent theme deeply connected to the first has to do with the nature of human relationships. All of the main characters are forced to learn difficult lessons about connecting with other people in their lives. Unfortunately, the dialogue includes quite a bit of foul language, with many obscenities and strong profanities. Several instances of explicit sexual dialogue occur throughout along with a scene strongly implying premarital sex as acceptable. Sadly, gutter language and inappropriate sexual content put a damper on an otherwise thought-provoking film.
Preview Reviewer: John Adair
Distributor: MGM/UA Distribution, 2500 Broadway St., Santa Monica, CA 90404-3061
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Summary
The following categories contain objective listings of film content which contribute to the subjective numeric Content ratings posted to the left and on the Home page.
Crude Language: Many (13) times - Mild 3, Moderate 10
Obscene Language: Many (30) times F-word 21, s-word 4, other 5
Profanity: Many (37) times Regular 26 (G 18, GD 2, J 5, JC); Exclamatory 11 (OG, OMG)
Violence: Few times Mild and Moderate (man pushed, man choked)
Sex: Once Implied (unmarried couple in bed)
Nudity: Once (brief view of small drawing showing full female frontal); Near Nudity Few times (women show cleavage, mannequins dressed provocatively in adult store)
Sexual Dialogue/Gesture: Several times (girl expresses desire to have sex with guy, comment on television show about a woman showing her breasts/ a guy presumed to engage in self-gratification, woman talks about engaging in self-gratification, comment about the appearance of womans breasts)
Drugs: Few times (smoking, alcohol)
Other: Flatulence sounds; running theme of people trying to connect with others in life
Running Time: 111 minutes
Intended Audience: Young adults
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