Ghost World (2001)

Thora Birch's Enid meets the empty summer after high school graduation with a stare so flat it becomes a weapon, and Scarlett Johansson's Rebecca matches her shrug for shrug. Steve Buscemi, as the lonely record collector Seymour, gives the film its sad, dry center. Based on Daniel Clowes's comic, it earned an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. The laughs come from contempt delivered quietly, and the mood turns melancholy as the friendship frays, so expect a comedy that ends on a low, open note rather than a punchline.