As much as I didn't like Terry Zwigoff's Art School Confidential, it was more than made up for by being able to re-watch his 2001 black comedy Ghost World. Thora Birch (as Enid), Steve Buscemi (as Seymour), Scarlett Johansson (as Rebecca), and Illeana Douglas (as Roberta) are all wonderful in this tale of alienated youths (and not so young people) existing on the fringes of an overly consumerist society. I was once again taken by the ending, when Enid gets on an out of service bus and heads out of town, which has always sparked controversy: Zwigoff proposed that it was a hopeful ending, as it symbolized transition, but many others, maybe most notably Birch, viewed it as very dark, with it symbolizing Enid's death of suicide. Throughout the film, Enid had talked to Norman, an old man who sat on the same bench, waiting for a bus - and he would never listen to Enid when she tells him that the line doesn't run anymore. Later, she sees him get on the bus, and it's difficult to not view it as symbolizing death, although maybe it's better to think of it as symbolizing release. For some reason, although I understand the suicide interpretation (and I may actually share it on some level), I still can't view the ending as depressing. Anyway, I love films which don't mind leaving you hanging and not simply tying things together in a clean, audience-friendly ending. Highly recommended.
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