Mary and Max

2009

Australia

Icon Home Entertainment

R4 DVD

Reviewer: Bob Estreich

It is very hard to classify this film. It is done in the old claymation technique, a form of stop-motion animation now only seen on Wallace and Gromit movies. It has comic elements but in so many places it is tragic, dealing as it does with social rejection and loneliness. It is, though, a warming story about friends, even those who have never met.

Mary Dinkle is a lonely eight year old girl living in one of the Melbourne suburbs. Her mother is an alcoholic and her reclusive father spends his time in the garden shed stuffing roadkill birds. Her mother has told Mary that she was “an accident” and she has little self esteem. She is teased by the kids at school and has no friends. One day while her mother is shoplifting envelopes from the local Post Office she picks a name at random from a New York phone book and resolves to write to that person.

Max is a forty-something lonely, overweight man who suffers from Aspergers Syndrome and a chocolate addiction. He likes an ordered, quiet life and any variation in his life throws him into an anxiety attack. He therefore has a lot of trouble handling his life in the city. Mary’s letter triggers an attack but Max decides he will answer the letter anyway since an eight year old girl in Australia is not very threatening. Gradually through their letters they get to know each other better and are comfortable enough with each other to share their thoughts and problems. Max offers Mary some advice on how to deal with one of the kids at school who is bullying her and it works, so Mary’s self esteem is bolstered.

Their correspondence continues as Mary grows up and goes to University. She even has the confidence to marry the Greek boy next door and is pregnant. At University she specialises in diseases of the mind, particularly Aspergers, and uses her correspondence with Max for her thesis. Her work is well received by everyone except Max. He feels betrayed and has a nervous breakdown that hospitalises him for eight months. Mary is horrified at what she has done to her only friend. She tries to apologise to him and even pulps her about-to-be-issued book but Max is incapable of answering her.

Mary’s life now descends into alcoholism. Her husband leaves her and she plans to commit suicide. Saved at the last minute by a neighbour, she finds that Max has forgiven her. A year later she and her new baby finally travel to New York to meet her lifelong friend.

I have often felt that Barry Humphries is an aging drag queen who should give it up and retire, but I can’t fault his narration of the story. Although his delivery has a slight humorous edge he can be very sympathetic during the tragic moments of the story. Tony Collette does the voice for the grown-up Mary and Eric Bana is the voice of the Greek boy next door. Renee Geyer does the voice of Mary’s mother. Even Ian (“Molly”) Meldrum makes a guest voice appearance. Where did all these people come from? The film would probably have been just as good with unknowns doing the voices, but these people gave up their time to help make a cartoon? They must have been as impressed as I was with Adam Elliot’s script and they didn’t have the advantage of having seen the finished product.

Although the film has its funny moments it never makes fun of the big problems like mental illness. These are handled sensitively. Elliot’s claymation work is faultless and his use of dull sepia colours for Mary’s life and greys, blacks and whites for Max set the mood beautifully for each person’s lifestyle. It’s not really a film for kids but there are messages in there for them.

The film was made for around eight million dollars – quite a bit in Australian terms, and largely funded by taxpayer money. I think we have got our money’s worth in this beautiful story.

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This review will appear in Volume 2 No.6 (2009) of the digital and print edition of Synergy Magazine.

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