This is a dark, morbid and hilarious comedy all at the same time...

Rating: 9/10 (1 June 2014)

People are often too quick to judge movies before they even know a lot about them. I suffer from this, and the number of times I've said something like "Channing Tatum, I'm not watching that" is extremely high. My own parents underwent a similar thing when I tried to convince them to watch 'Mary and Max' for what was my second viewing of it. And to be honest, it's a hard sell: Australian indie claymation film? No thanks. The main thing to remember here is that your instincts are often wrong, and the phrase 'never judge a book by its cover' applies here too. 'Mary and Max' is a dark, morbid and hilarious comedy about an odd friendship and mental illness, and took me completely by surprise.
The movie tells the story of Mary Dinkle, a young girl growing up in Australia with her alcoholic mother, who chooses a random name from the phone book and decides to write to them. She lives a relatively poor life, has few friends and is very naive about certain aspects of life. The recipient of her letter is Max Horowitz, an obese Jewish man living in New York, with various mental disorders and few friends. Their unlikely relationship is so heartwarming, as they manage to change, and eventually save, each others lives. Be warned it can feel quite depressing at times, and at around the 2/3rds mark you're sure that it can't get any worse for either of them, but it's worth sticking with, as the ending is both uplifting and beautiful.
The two main voice roles are performed by Toni Collette (who eventually makes an appearance towards the film's end) and Philip Seymour Hoffman, and the dialogue in the letters they send is constantly witty and endearing. They learn about each others problems and often offer solutions, with varying degrees of success. The other big voice role is that of the narrator, played by Barry Humphries (known to many as Dame Edna Everage). His part is a perfect example of how great the writing in this film is, providing crucial observations and character information. The film is made even better with the well crafted animation, making it feel like a grown up version of Wallace and Gromit. Visual touches, such as the black-and-white setting of New York, and sepia Melbourne landscapes, help to make the film even more clever and beautiful.
'Mary and Max' is a beautiful movie, whose only flaw is the occasional bit of dragging, which is understandable given the tricky medium that the filmmakers are working with. It's enjoyable and funny, and a continuing example of how much I respect the IMDb Top 250, on which this features. This is not one of the best 250 films ever made, but if it's appearance on the list makes sure that more people see this film, then it deserves to be there. It deals with a tricky subject matter but does so in a very watchable way.