Finally, a teenage movie that doesn't trivialize the lives of teenagers. A film told from an entirely different perspective than that of the popular girl, or, for that matter, the geeky teen who longs to be popular and will be by the end of the 90 minutes'as long as she removes her glasses. A story that not only speaks to high school audiences but also to older patrons who remember their teenage years all too well.
'Ghost World' follows Enid (Thora Birch), a misfit teen who has just graduated from high school and has no plans for her future that don't involve mocking everything in sight with her best friend, Rebecca (Scarlett Johansson). The two have been pals since birth, and plan to rent an apartment together.
After graduation, Rebecca gets a job at a coffee shop, while Enid is forced to spend her days in a remedial art class. One afternoon, the two play a prank on an unsuspecting, middle-aged record collector, Seymour (Steve Buscemi). Enid's guilt over the harassment leads her into a friendship with Seymour and some long-needed self analysis.
'Ghost World' is based on a comic book by Daniel Clowns, and thankfully none of the characters seem like cartoons. They all have depth and complexity, particularly Enid. This is a girl who has spent her whole life distancing herself from the status quo, immersing herself so completely in nonconformity that normal relationships are impossible. Everything mainstream is moronic to Enid; only the quirky and eccentric are acceptable.
It is this outlook on life that leads Enid to a total standstill once she leaves high school. Because she has spent her entire life isolating herself through sarcasm and a cooler-than-thou attitude, she has never taken the time to get to know herself and where she wants to go. During the course of the film, the people that she loves begin to leave her behind as they create lives of their own, which makes her see that she, too, needs some direction.
All of the actors in 'Ghost World' give memorable performances. Birch has the role of the misunderstood teen down pat (remember 'American Beauty'?) and Steve Buscemi's awkward Seymour is extremely endearing. Illeana Douglas is hilarious as Enid's dippy art teacher.
'Ghost World' offers a different look at high school through its depiction of the atypical teen and the counterculture that exists in every high school in America. More importantly, however, it offers a warning to these loners: It's okay to create a unique world for yourself'just make sure you aren't the only one in it.
Tim Blake Nelson can't get enough of that 15th letter of the alphabet. Last year he gave a hilarious performance alongside George Clooney and John Turturro as the third convict on the run in the magnificent 'O, Brother, Where Art Thou'?
This year he comes back to the big screen on the other side of the camera with 'O,' a modernized retelling of Shakespeare's 'Othello.'
The main press 'O' has been getting, even before it came out last weekend, was for its presentation of violence, as you'd expect from the postponement of release due to the Columbine massacre that paralleled some of its subject matter.
Pushing the Columbine hype aside, 'O' has enough merits to stand on its own. The acting from its three main stars has an honesty to it that's often difficult for young actors to come out with.
Julia Stiles and Mekhi Phifer star as an interracial couple at the center of attention in a prestigious prep school. At the start of the film we find that he's the star basketball player, and she's the dean's daughter. The fact that they look so good together and seem to have it all, it builds jealousy into Josh Hartnett's character, Hugo.
The rest of the film is spent exploring the dark side of jealousy in this prep-school environment. In the end, the envy and deception take a brutal turn. It's tough to decide whether the high school setting made it more disturbing or less realistic, that kids could succumb to such violence and evil, but after Columbine, there's a tragic breath of validity in this film that rings too close to home.
One of the more powerful scenes in 'O' is when a character is being mercilessly teased by two of the popular kids sitting behind him in the bleachers at a basketball game. They continually flick his ears and call him a faggot until he leaves. One can see the pain, and in turn, the rage that is building up inside of him.
The direction by Nelson throughout the film is simple but effective. Subtle zooms and well chosen close-ups convincingly set the mood, and the powerful performance by all the young actors make the film all the more tragic.
It's said that every story comes down in some way to something Shakespeare wrote, that everything comes full circle. With 'O,' the story of Othello stays frighteningly modern even after all these years.
Kevin Smith has spent years walking the fine line between independent film god and master of the cheap laugh. The man launched his career with the brilliant and self-financed movie 'Clerks' but now takes mildly funny potshots at Christianity and Hollywood via fart jokes and drug-dealing heroes Jay and Silent Bob.
The latest and last installment in the 'New Jersey Chronicles,' 'Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back' follows the title characters (played by Jason Mewes and Smith himself) on a road trip to Hollywood. Their intent: Halt the taping of 'Bluntman and Chronic,' a Miramax production that has stolen their stoner likenesses and is getting them slandered on a new-fangled invention called the Internet.
Once they hit the road, Smith peppers his paper-thin plot with the stock 'road trip movie' fare, wacky hitchhiking misunderstandings, drug scenes and hot chicks (lead by Shannon Elizabeth).
Even with an obsessively loyal fan base, 'Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back' should be a failure. Pushing two minor, but popular, characters into the spotlight and expecting them to be able to sustain an entire film might be considered an act of desperation. Following up a not-so successful satire of the Catholic Church with a satire of Hollywood seems unwise. And Smith won't wow any critics with his decision to cram the plot so full of cameos that even the most die-hard fan has lost any sense of novelty.
But if he wants, Smith can sit back and enjoy the success. Why? Some of those die-hard fans really, really, really like fart jokes.
Jay and Silent Bob can't pull on your heartstrings, but their bonehead antics deliver consistent laughs even if the audience is cringing at the same time. And Smith may have fallen short on a thoughtful critique of Hollywood's phoniness, but his spoofing of movies such as 'Scream' and 'Good Will Hunting' surpasses anything found in the recent 'Scary Movie.'
The bottom line? You will laugh'you will. But just because one director has amazing insight into the life of a convince-me- store clerk doesn't mean he has anything real to say about Hollywood.
If you want Smith to hold your hand while he reveals the gradients of gray beneath the black and white of Jay's character, it's time to remember you're watching a movie about two drug dealers who like to hang out in front of a Quick Stop.
