Mary and Max
AMG AllMovie Guide:
Top
Mary and Max
Plot
Academy Award-winning Harvie Krumpet director Adam Elliot returns to the world of clay animation with this simple tale of the innocent correspondence between a portly eight year old girl from the suburbs of Melbourne and a morbidly obese, middle-aged Jewish New Yorker suffering from Asperger's Syndrome. On the surface it would seem that Mary (Toni Collette) and Max (Philip Seymour Hoffman) would have little in common, but over the course of twenty years, the unlikely pen pals exchange letters discussing everything from taxidermy, trust, pets, religion, obesity, autism, agoraphobia, alcoholism, and just about any other topic that comes to mind as they sit down and put pen to paper. Barry Humphries and Eric Bana provide additional voices. ~ Jason Buchanan, RoviReview
At its core, Adam Elliot's stop-motion animated opus Mary & Max may well be one of the most despairing mainstream features ever made. That isn't intended as a criticism of the film, but as an observation; despair is integral to the film's worldview. In Elliot's universe - a godless, a-humanist universe of chaos, random violence and meaningless, tragic absurdities - humans create their only real significance via intimate personal connections with one another. The earnestness of one such connection - a marvelous friendship at the center of this story - also gives the movie resounding levels of heart, soul, and hope, that effectively offset the maelstrom of suffering it perceives.The story, which Elliot loosely adapted from one of his personal experiences, concerns Mary Daisy Dinkle (voiced as a child by Bethany Whitmore and as an adult by Toni Collette), a lonely, sad, bespectacled 8-year-old growing up in suburban Australia in the late 1970s. Saddled with an outrageously dysfunctional family - mother Vera (Renee Geyer) is a chain-smoking hag in granny glasses who drowns herself in sherry on a regular basis, while absentee father Noel works in a dehumanizing job at a teabag factory and bides his time stuffing the carcasses of oscine roadkill -- Mary longs for a real friend. She finds one by randomly picking a name out of the New York City phone book, and a short letter later, snags the most random of pen pals: Max Jerry Horowitz (voiced by Philip Seymour Hoffman). He's a sad-sack, overweight loser in his mid-40s, saddled with a history of random occupations, that include issuing subway tokens and working in a condom factory. Max, like Mary, has no friends, no loving and supportive family; his evenings consist of devouring prodigious numbers of chocolate hot dogs and attending Overeaters Anonymous meetings, where he is relentlessly accosted by a grotesque, overweight, lovelorn woman. As the years and decades roll on, Mary and Max become best friends despite the vast geographic separation between them, and spend their exchanges confessing their most intimate secrets and emotionally affecting experiences with one another.
Elliot has compared this film to Alexander Payne's About Schmidt; it has the same conceit of a zero pouring his heart and soul out to a distant friend, but this is a far darker and angrier movie. The world we're presented with is unforgettable, especially for the thematic precedents it sets in animation. The director covers such areas as alcoholism, suicide, racism (the Jewish Max has traumatizing flashbacks of anti-Semitic bullying from his childhood), homelessness, electro-shock therapy, institutionalization, clinical depression and chronic loneliness. It would be devastating if the writer-director-animator didn't counterbalance the grief with the sweetness of the central relationship, or supplement the material with a marvelously wacky, way-offbeat sense of humor and visual magic that work in tandem and overwhelm the viewer. The genius lies in thousands of wondrous details and narrative developments, with sequences so finely embroidered that Elliot must certainly have spent an unholy amount of time pouring over the minutiae of each scene and character and lacing them with the inspired. The instances are almost too innumerable to mention, but two of the movie's finest moments (and biggest laughs) arrive courtesy of Max's neighbor Ivy, a prune-faced woman whose legal blindness doesn't prevent her from making Max inedible bowls of soup, and Max's pal Mister Alfonso Ravioli, who grows addicted to self-help books and finally decides to make good on his ambition to leave Max and explore the world - making Max perhaps the only individual in history to be socially abandoned by an imaginary friend. On many other occasions, Elliot tosses in throwaway gags and bits that earn a fair number of belly laughs, such as the sight that follows the disclosure of Asperger-ridden Max's inclination to take things too literally (Elliot cuts to him actually taking a seat along with him on the bus), or the sight of Mary (when she attends college as a psychology major) reading a book entitled, 'I'm Okay, You're A Homicidal Maniac.'
It perhaps goes without saying, as well, (given Elliot's track record) that the characters are beautifully and meticulously rendered and animated, especially their facial expressions; they often verge on the adorable, but that works beautifully here, because it offsets the gallows humor and cruelty of many of the narrative developments.
On many levels (including an identical tone and voice, and similar character designs) the film recalls the genius of Elliot's prior effort, the 30-minute Sundance Festival darling Harvie Krumpet (2003); this represents a step forward, however. Whereas Harvie, though immensely enjoyable and occasionally brilliant, seemed at best like a collection of random absurdist sketches, loosely linked by the thread of a single character, Mary & Max has a purpose for being, rooted in the aforementioned theme of spiritual and emotional salvation through connectedness with other human beings. One may or may not agree with Elliot's agnostic existentialism, but the film defies one to not feel swept up in the emotional undercurrents of the central friendship - to such a degree that when the final scene arrives, with a revelation of Mary's significance to Max, the story succeeds at touching one's heart on a deeper level than we might ever have imagined possible. ~ Rovi
Cast
- Toni Collette - Mary Daisy Dinkle (adult)
- Philip Seymour Hoffman - Max Jerry Horowitz
- Barry Humphries - Narrator
- Eric Bana - Damien
- Bethany Whitmore - Mary Daisy Dinkle (child)
Credit
Craig Fison - Art Director, Darren Burgess - Animation Director, Pauline Piechota - Associate Producer, Brooke Howden - Casting, Felicity Hardy - Costume Designer, Marion Marks - Costume Designer, Adam Elliot - Director, Bill Murphy - Editor, Bryce Menzies - Executive Producer, Tom Hardart - Executive Producer, Paul Hardart - Executive Producer, Mark Gooder - Executive Producer, Jonathan Page - Executive Producer, Tom Wild - Line Producer, Leanne Smith - Musical Direction/Supervision, Adam Elliot - Production Designer, Gerald Thompson - Cinematographer, Melanie Coombs - Producer, Henry Karjalainen - Producer, Peter Walker - Sound/Sound Designer, Andrew McGrath - Sound/Sound Designer, Adam Elliot - Screenwriter, Michael Allen - Visual Effects Supervisor, Andrew McGrath - Supervising Sound Editor, Andrew Mackie - Co-Executive Producer, Richard Payten - Co-Executive Producer, Iain Canning - Co-Executive Producer, Adam Elliot - Character Design, Sue Collins - Assistant Director, Jason Lynch - Key Animator| Mary and Joseph: In the Beginning There Was Love (1979 Film), Mary and Joseph: A Story of Faith (1979 Film) | |
| Mary and Rhoda (2000 Film), Mary of Nazareth (1995 Film) |
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Top
Mary and Max
| Mary and Max | |
|---|---|
 UK film poster |
|
| Directed by | Adam Elliot |
| Produced by | Melanie Coombs |
| Written by | Adam Elliot |
| Narrated by | Barry Humphries |
| Starring | Bethany Whitmore Toni Collette Philip Seymour Hoffman Eric Bana Barry Humphries |
| Music by | Dale Cornelius |
| Cinematography | Gerald Thompson |
| Editing by | Bill Murphy |
| Distributed by | Icon Entertainment International |
| Release date(s) |
|
| Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English Yiddish |
| Budget | A$8,240,000[1] |
| Box office | $1,712,085 |
Mary and Max is a 2009 Australian clay-animated black comedy-drama film written and directed by Adam Elliot and produced by Melanie Coombs. The voice cast included Philip Seymour Hoffman, Toni Collette, Eric Bana, Bethany Whitmore, with narration by Barry Humphries. The film premiered on the opening night of the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.[2] The film won the Annecy Cristal in June 2009 from the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, and Best Animated Feature Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in November 2009.
|
Contents
|
Plot
It is 1976, and 8-year-old Mary Daisy Dinkle (Bethany Whitmore) is a lonely little girl living in Mount Waverley, Australia. Her relatively poor family cannot afford to buy her toys or nice clothing, and she is teased by children at her school due to an unfortunate birthmark on her forehead. Her father is distant and her alcoholic, kleptomaniac mother provides no support. The closest thing she has to a friend is the man for whom Mary collects mail, Len Hislop, a Greek Australian World War II veteran who lost his legs in combat and has developed agoraphobia.
One day, by pure chance, she decides to write a letter to a man living in New York City: Max Jerry Horowitz (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Max turns out to be a morbidly obese 44-year-old whose various mental problems (including anxiety attacks and overeating) have left him unable to form close bonds with other people. Max decides to write back to Mary, and the two become friends. Over time, Mary's increasingly sensitive questions about the adult world give Max progressively worse anxiety attacks, and he is ultimately institutionalized. During his time there, Max is diagnosed with depression and Asperger syndrome. Now aware of why he has difficulty relating to other people, Max finds a new lease on life and resumes his correspondence with Mary.
The two remain friends for the next two decades, keeping one another updated on various events in their lives. Mary (Toni Colette), inspired by her friendship with Max, becomes a psychologist and marries her childhood crush, an effeminate young man named Damien Popodopoulos who enjoys sewing but fears Mary's sexual advances. Max wins the New York lottery, using his winnings to buy a (literal) life-time supply of chocolate and then giving the rest away to his elderly neighbor, who wastes most of it before dying and leaving the remainder to a cat shelter only to have the owner of the shelter take it all for himself.
After earning her degree, Mary writes a psychological book detailing her communication with Max, in an attempt to dissect Asperger's syndrome. Max is infuriated, having told Mary that he has come to terms with his illness and sees it as an integral part of his personality, not something that needs to be diagnosed and cured. Max ends his communication with Mary, sending her the "M" key from his typewriter. When Mary receives the key in the mail, she is heartbroken and has the entire run of the book pulped, effectively ending her budding career. In her despair, Mary takes up her mother's affection for sherry. Chronically depressed and drunk all of the time, one day Mary receives a note from Damien informing her that he has left her: he has fallen in love with his own pen pal, Desmond, a sheep farmer in New Zealand. In the meantime, Max has decided to forgive Mary, and has sent her a gift as a token of his continuing friendship. Mary is so unmanned by her depression and drunkenness, though, that she is unaware of the package that has been sitting on her doorstep for several days. Ultimately, Mary discovers some Valium that had belonged to her mother, and, not knowing that she is pregnant, decides to take her own life.
Just as Mary is about to kill herself, her neighbor Len knocks on her door, having conquered his agoraphobia in order to alert her of the package on her porch. Opening it, Mary finds Max's reconciliation gift, along with an accompanying letter detailing the reasons why he forgives her, how much their friendship means to him, and his hope that one day their lives will intersect and they will meet in person. It is enough to jar Mary from her depression, and she decides to start her life over again.
One year later, Mary travels to America with her infant son to finally visit Max. Entering his apartment, Mary discovers the now elderly Max, sitting on his couch, gazing upward, having passed away peacefully earlier that morning. Seeing this, Mary returns the removed "M" key to Max's typewriter and sits down next to him with her son. Looking around the apartment, Mary discovers that Max has kept many of the mementos she sent and has organized the entire ceiling into a detailed scrapbook of his friendship with Mary, composed of all of her letters from over the years, which is what he was looking at when he died. Seeing how much Max valued their friendship and how happy it made him, Mary is moved to tears of joy as the film closes.
Cast
- Barry Humphries as the Narrator[3]
- Bethany Whitmore / Toni Collette as Mary Daisy Dinkle[3]
- Philip Seymour Hoffman as Max Jerry Horowitz[3]
- Eric Bana as Damian Popodopoulos[3]
- Renée Geyer as Vera Dinkle
- Ian "Molly" Meldrum as Homeless Man
Themes
The film deals with themes including childhood neglect, friendship, the obscurity of life, teasing, loneliness, autism (Asperger syndrome in particular), obesity, depression and anxiety.[4]
Production
According to the opening credits, the film is based on a true story. In an interview given in April 2009, writer-director Elliot clarified that the character of Max was inspired by "a pen-friend in New York who I've been writing to for over twenty years."[5][6]
Principal photography lasted over 57 weeks, using 133 separate sets, 212 puppets, and 475 miniature props, "including a fully functioning Underwood typewriter which apparently took 9 weeks to design and build."[7]
Music
The music in the film features Simon Jeffes and the Penguin Cafe Orchestra's "Perpetuum Mobile" (the opening theme) and "Prelude and Yodel", as well as "Russian Rag" by Elena Kats-Chernin. The closing-credits music is "A Swingin' Safari" by Bert Kaempfert and his Orchestra.
Other artists include Nana Mouskouri, Dale Cornelius, Leroy Anderson, Pink Martini, London Pops Orchestra, James Last and his Orchestra, The King's Consort and Choir, the Sydney Alpha Ensemble, and the ABC Radio Orchestra.[8]
Reception
Mary and Max received generally very positive reviews.[9][10][11] As of 2012, 94% (51 of 54) of the critics at the film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes rate Mary and Max fresh, with five of the six "Top Critic" reviews agreeing.[12]
Matt Ravier, writing for In Film Australia,[7] said the "story is paper-thin and some stretches of it are simply too long, yet whenever the narrative thread threatens to tear the sheer authenticity and bold honesty of the characters save the day." The Los Angeles Times called it a "remarkable and poignant" film depicting a "film noir world of blacks, whites and grays for Max and a sepia suburbia for Mary."[13]
After the film was released on DVD in the United States, Slant said "Adam Elliot's dry wit is pervasive throughout Mary and Max and it's nice to see that this unique sense of humor extends to the extras. The writer-director gives a funny and informative audio commentary and a set of hilarious making-of episodes reflects the sardonic tone of the production. The big prize here, however, is the addition of Elliot's Oscar-winning short Harvie Krumpet. This Geoffrey-Rush-narrated tale of the titular Aspergers syndrome sufferer is a wonderful introduction both to Elliot's sensibilities and to Mary and Max's specific tone."[14]
Box office
Mary and Max grossed $1,444,617 at the Australian box office.[15]
The film received no general theatrical release in the United States, though it was showcased at several American film festivals,[16] and was briefly shown at one of the Laemmle Theatres in the Los Angeles area.[13] The film's U.S. distributor (IFC Films) made the film available through video on demand.[14]
The film was released in France by Gaumont and in Germany by MFA to significant critical and box office success.[17][18]
Awards
It was awarded the Grand Prize for Best Animated Feature at the 2009 Ottawa International Animation Festival[19] and cowinner (with Coraline) of the "Cristal" for Best Feature at the 2009 Annecy International Animation Film Festival.[20][21] The film was also shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature at the 82nd Academy Awards, but was ultimately not nominated. Mary and Max was commended in the Best Australian Film category in the Australian Film Critics Association awards for 2009. The film won the Asia Pacific Screen Award for the Best Animated Feature Film 2009.[22]
Related exhibition
An exhibit of artefacts and clips from the film were presented in France and Australia. In France the exhibition was hosted by Gaumont as part of the release.[17]
In Australia initially at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image for three months starting in March 2010.[23] and then touring around Australia throughout 2010/2011.[24]
See also
- Harvie Krumpet, another claymation film directed by Adam Elliot
References
- ^ Dent, Nick. "Mary and Max". Time Out Sidney. http://www.timeoutsydney.com.au/film/newsinterviews/mary-and-max.aspx. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
- ^ Jones, Michael (19 November 2008). "'Mary and Max' to open Sundance". Variety. http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=festivals&jump=story&id=2470&articleid=VR1117996154&cs=1. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ a b c d Thomas, Archie (1 October 2008). "Philip Seymour Hoffman joins 'Mary'". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117993177.html?categoryid=13&cs=1&nid=2564. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ Schembri, Jim (13 April 2009). "Mary and Max (review)". The Age. http://www.theage.com.au/news/entertainment/film/film-reviews/mary-and-max/2009/04/09/1239222976141.html. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ Milfull, Tim (5 April 2009). "Cinema: An Interview with Adam Elliot". http://reviews.media-culture.org.au/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3239. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ Milfull, Tim (6 April 2009). "Informer Cinema: Adam Elliot – Mary And Max Interview". Rave Magazine. http://www.ravemagazine.com.au/content/view/14537/192/. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ a b Ravier, Matt (12 February 2009). "Review: Mary and Max (2009)". In Film Australia. http://www.infilm.com.au/?p=745. Retrieved 24 September 2010.
- ^ "Dale Cornelius". nativetongue.com.au. http://www.nativetongue.com.au/dale-cornelius.html. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ Pomeranz, Margaret (8 April 2009). "Mary and Max". At the Movies (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). http://www.abc.net.au/atthemovies/txt/s2527141.htm. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ "International Competition / Jury Statements". Stuttgart, Germany: International Trickfilm Festival. http://www.itfs.de/en/press/jury-statements.html. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ Dunks, Glenn (7 April 2009). "Review: Mary & Max". Stale Popcorn. http://stalepopcornau.blogspot.com/2009/04/clay-mary-and-clay-max.html. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ "Mary and Max (2009)". Rotten Tomatoes. http://uk.rottentomatoes.com/m/1209767-mary_and_max/. Retrieved 24 September 2010.
- ^ a b Thomas, Kevin (25 September 2009). "A love letter to pen pals' power". Capsule Movie Reviews. Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2009/sep/25/entertainment/et-capsules25/3. Retrieved 24 September 2010.
- ^ a b "Mary and Max". 19 July 2010. http://www.slantmagazine.com/dvd/review/mary-and-max/1776. Retrieved 24 September 2010.
- ^ Film Victoria – Australian Films at the Australian Box Office
- ^ Release dates for Mary and Max (2009) from the Internet Movie Database
- ^ a b [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ "2009 Award Winners". Ottawa International Animation Festival. http://www.animationfestival.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=163&Itemid=806&limit=1&limitstart=2. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ Moody, Annemarie (15 June 2009) Coraline, Mary & Max Win Annecy Cristal Award AWN.com, Animation World Network
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (13 June 2009) 'Coraline,' 'Max' share Annecy prize Variety
- ^ [3]
- ^ "Mary and Max : The Exhibition". Australian Centre for the Moving Image. http://artabase.net/exhibition/2025-mary-and-max-the-exhibition. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ [4]
External links
- Official website
- Mary and Max at the Internet Movie Database
- Mary and Max at Rotten Tomatoes
- Mary & Max ante el espejo, de Juan Carlos Villavicencio. Essay about this film in spanish in Descontexto blog.
|
|||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:
Copyrights:
AMG AllMovie Guide
Copyright © 2012 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Movie Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.
Read more
