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Must Go!
Avg. Critic Score: 88 out of 100 Universal acclaim Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
15 Iffy for 15+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 100
    The New York Times | Dana Stevens

    It's surely the best depiction of teenage eccentricity since "Rushmore," and its incisive satire of the boredom and conformity that rule our thrill-seeking, individualistic land, and also its question-mark ending, reminded me of "The Graduate." Read full review

  • 100
    Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

    I wanted to hug this movie. It takes such a risky journey and never steps wrong. It creates specific, original, believable, lovable characters, and meanders with them through their inconsolable days, never losing its sense of humor. Read full review

  • 91
    Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman

    A buoyant, funny, and disarmingly humane comedy of beautiful losers in revolt. Read full review

  • 90
    Washington Post | Stephen Hunter

    A character so real and poignant (yet hysterically funny), she'll linger for months or years. Read full review

  • 90
    Washington Post | Desson Thomson

    Buscemi makes Seymour into a character you simply want to see again and again. He's the most appealing, amusing "loser" anyone could ever share old records with. Read full review

  • 90
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    Let the unsettling secrets of this outrageously funny and steadily engrossing meditation on the life of two high school misfits after graduation catch you by surprise. It's that good. Read full review

  • 88
    USA Today | Claudia Puig

    Ghost World draws super, natural performances. Read full review

  • 80
    Los Angeles Times | Kevin Thomas

    Ghost World is above all a disquieting consciousness-raiser. Read full review

  • 80
    Variety | Ken Eisner

    By sharp turns poignant, disturbing and hysterically funny. Read full review

  • 75
    San Francisco Chronicle |

    Bests most other teen comedies right off the bat. If you got a kick out of "Crumb," this film will crack you up. Read full review

View more reviews for Ghost World on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 15+ Offbeat indie dramedy will resonate with older teens.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this coming-of-age indie follows two best friends the summer after they graduate from high school. The graphic-novel adaptation is not your typical teen flick. There is a lot of strong language ("f--k," "c--t," "p---y" and other curse words are said frequently) and an intimate friendship between an 18-year-old girl and a much older man that's eventually consummated (the couple is briefly shown kissing and then in bed next to each other). The main theme of the movie may go over some teens' heads; it's basically that becoming an adult can be boring and confusing, and how working and conforming is a lot less hip than just doing whatever you want.
  • Families can talk about coming-of-age movies about high-school graduates. What common themes are present in most of these adolescent films?
  • Parents and kids can also discuss Enid's friendship with Seymour. How is their inter-generational relationship portrayed?
  • How do Enid and Becky affect and influence each other? Which one of them do you relate to more? Why?
  • Adaptations of graphic novels have become quite popular. What are the best examples of the genre?
The good stuff
  • message true0 Positive messages: Although there are positive messages about friendship -- the protagonists are loyal to each other -- there are also negative messages that in order to be hip you have to be a slacker who doesn't go to college, care about work, or much of anything other than making fun of other people.
  • rolemodels true0 Positive role models: Enid, in particular, shows a great contempt for most people, calling everyone "stupid" and saying she "hates everyone." Besides Becky, her only friend is Seymour, who also lives in an insular world surrounded only by people who like the exact same things as he. Enid is irresponsible, refuses to hold down a job, and has a superiority complex but is also strong, opinionated, impervious to peer pressure, and a loyal friend to Seymour until she sleeps with him. Becky is a good role model for an unconditional friend who isn't afraid to confront or criticize her friend when it's appropriate.
What to watch for
  • violence false0 Violence: Not an issue
  • sex false3 Sex: An 18-year-old sleeps with a much older man but all that's shown is a brief kiss in one scene and then the two (covered up) in bed the next. An adult couple flirts, dances. Enid and Becky discuss relationships and joke about virginity, past boyfriends. Enid drags Seymour into a XXX store to make fun of its patrons.
  • language false4 Language: Frequently used words include "f--k," "s--t," "assh--e," and the occasional "c--t" and "pu--y." "God damn!" is also said fairly often.
  • consumerism false0 Consumerism: Not an issue
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false3 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Teenage girls drink and smoke cigarettes, and in one scene, a protagonist gets drunk and sleeps with a much older man.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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