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Mary and Max

Release Date 21 Oct 2010 22 Mar 2011

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  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
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Certificate: NR

Genre: Family | Fantasy | Animation

Spanning 20 years and two continents, "Mary and Max" tells of a pen-pal relationship between two very different people: Mary Dinkle, a chubby, lonely eight-year-old living in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia; and Max Horovitz, a severely obese, 44-year-old Jewish man with Asperger's Syndrome living in the chaos of New York City. As "Mary and Max" chronicles Mary's trip from adolescence to adulthood, and Max's passage from middle to old age, it explores a bond that survives much more than the average friendship's ups-and-downs. Like Elliot and Coombs''Oscar(R) winning animated short "Harvie Krumpet", "Mary and Max"is both hilarious and poignant as it takes us on a journey that explores friendship, autism, taxidermy, psychiatry, alcoholism, where babies come from, obesity, kleptomania, sexual differences, trust, copulating dogs, religious differences, agoraphobia and many more of life's surprises.

Cast:
Philip Seymour Hoffman | Toni Collette | Eric Bana | Barry Humphries | Bethany Whitmore | Renée Geyer

Writers:
Adam Elliot

Producers:
Melanie Coombs

Directors:
Adam Elliot

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  • Avg User rating
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.

User Reviews

    • Currently 3/5 Stars.

    mart

    A very odd, very unlikely animated film from Australia that manages to be sickly-cute, alarmingly grotesque, and right-on at the same time -- often in the very same scene

    • Currently 5/5 Stars.

    ssconnolly

    Mary Dinkle is a young Australian girl, daughter of an alcoholic mother and a distant father. One day while accompanying her mother to the store she flips through a New York phone book, reveling in reading the strange names within. She pulls out part of a page and since she has never been able to make friends in her own neighbourhood she decides to write to a man listed in the phonebook. The man is Max Horowitz, a lonely, overweight New Yorker who's prone to crippling anxiety attacks. Despite his initial feeling of worry upon the arrival of the letter he writes back, beginning a 20-year correspondence. As both deal with problems and achievements in their own lives their relationship grows stronger and soon the pair rely on each others' friendship, despite the pair having never met. Mary and Max is one of those rare treats we don't get enough of, one of those films which comes out of nowhere and completely blows you away. I hadn't heard of this film before it was recommended to me, and I didn't know what I was about to see. And now after seeing it I can't believe I never heard of it, because considering how good this film is they should be pasting posters and putting up advertisement trailers left, right and centre. It is not only one of the years best, but also one of the best animated films I've ever seen, easily blighting many of Disney and Pixar's finest projects. It's also an admirable creation. I mean take a look at Avatar, a film which took over a decade to make with a budget between 200-500 million dollars and in the end all they had to show for it was a ridiculously mediocre film, cold, emotionless and boring. Then look at this. It took 5 years with a budget of just 8 million and created something more moving and breathtaking than anything I've seen in a long time. The animation and the direction are amazing, and you can see the care that was put into it all and the extraordinary eye for detail. The film moves between the two settings, both presented beautifully. The cold, dark and alienating city setting of New York with Max mixed with the brightness and warmth of Australia with Mary. It looks superb and I can't help but feel that if this was live action it would be substantially less affecting. One thing that needs to be said is that this is not a film to bring your kids to. This is an animation for adults, that is unless you like your kids asking you some awkward questions. Sure it has some of the characteristics of those Pixar projects that everyones kids love, the genuine charm, the warmth, the tragedy and the jokes but just below the surface there are some more sinister themes at play. The film dabbles in more complicated matters, with our engaging lead characters dealing with loss, suicide, alcoholism and obesity, among others. Some might argue that it maybe tries too much, but its only a problem if they don't do it well. But they do it very well and what you get at the end of the day is a hugely affecting film. I can't imagine anyone not being moved by the film as it's as sad as it is sweet and there's something for everyone to relate to. So all in all Mary and Max is a 2010 must-see film, one which will stay with you for a long time after you leave the theatre. With all the CGI and 3D hitting the screens lately this film makes a strong case for more stop motion animations. Sure it's time consuming but the results are stunning. Mary and Max is an astounding film. Moving, witty, funny and original this is one of the years best films. Philip Seymour Hoffman provides the perfect voice for Max. I mean I rarely take note of actor performances in animations but it is a great voice for him, and Toni Colette also does a fine job. I have absolutely no doubt that this film should win the best animated feature film Oscar as it easily eclipses Toy Story 3, How to Train your Dragon and anything else we have been or could be presented with. If it doesn't win then the Academy Awards will officially become the crowd pleaser awards, as if them ignoring Up in the Air didn't already show this.

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