MARY AND MAX (2009)

‘God gave us relatives…thank God we can chose our friends.’

There’s nothing similar between pen-friendship of 8 year old Mary Daisy Dinkle and 44 years old Max Horowitz living in different regions of the globe except their three common things- liking of an animation television show ‘The Noblets’, loving packs of chocolates and living lonely and fragile existence. They write letters to each other and in spite of all their life’s oddities become friends for lifetime. So what’s connecting these unlikely strangers? It’s their sharing of letters proving emotional washbasin to each other. When writing letters become almost alien concept in today’s email & SMS world, I love this fine gesture of telling this unique friendship tale with mere clay models.

It’s seldom we find any animation film with such an intelligent humor dipped with witty lines subtle narration and moving melodrama based on true events. In fact it’s not an animation film but a film made with clay models and it’s damn difficult to make audience feel for characters without any graphical expressions or effects in an experimental film like this. Without any big studio support writer, designer & director Adam Elliot has managed to make this independent low budget film with all heart and soul at right places. Unlike other Hollywood’s animation films, the film bears lot of dark humor but it’s nowhere overshadow the overall emotional tone of the film and that’s fine nuance of this film.

Undoubtedly one of finest discovery of the last year.

Ratings- 8.5/10