It’s at this point, when she starts treating Max as a subject rather than a friend, that the friendship falls apart. It’s also a film that addresses completely frankly issues like alcoholism, parental neglect, and suicide. The moment Max communicates to Mary, and us, about his newly acquired condition. A defining characteristic of Elliot’s work - and of Mary and Max - is the degree of odd detail given to his characters. Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 2 and Clip 1 as an illustration of how this is depicted in the film. I instantly knew it was my favourite film of the year. This started a friendship that lasts decades. Though her studies certainly help her to understand Max’s mind a bit more, it takes her focus away from the soul she befriended as a child - which isn’t lost on the increasingly hurt and confused Max. Copyright © 2020 animationstudies 2.0. Your email address will not be published. In the movie, this is Max Jerry Horovitz, a 44-year-old Jewish man (voiced by Philip Seymour Hoffman) who weighs 150 kilograms and lives on chocolate hot dogs. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgRjB8PEDkM (official trailer), http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-4C6FUS4lY (a new thing called Asperger’s). The context of autism (specifically Asperger’s; an autism spectrum condition) provides the backdrop, in part, for the animated feature Max and Mary (2009). Mary And Max has all the brilliance of the early work and a lot more ambition. Collins’ Crypt: THE EXORCIST Director’s Cut Vs. Although I felt Mary and Max was a beautiful film, and exceptionally well-crafted, as an Aspie, I found it quite tragic. He has worked on animation projects and currently researches the role of virtual environments and the impact such technologies can have on young people with autism (and Asperger’s). I first saw Mary and Max at the New Zealand Film Festival in July 2009. And yet, this is a love story, too, because Mary is capable of making him feel friendship through her letters. She's Mary Dinkle, the only child of an alcoholic mother and a distracted father. 4: The use of drawings in Max’s sketchbook to help him decipher non-verbal cues. The narrator says one thing and the characters do the opposite. Although the overarching story is sad in and of itself, it’s the details that really get to you. It’s just that people and society in general are not aware of the many types of disorders and that help is available. Nearly completely drained of colour, it starts off sad, gets sadder as it goes on, and escalates towards an almost unbearably bittersweet ending. "You got room for one more bag?" In Short, the story concerns a little girl who lives in Australia and who has domestic issues which affect her circle of friends. No one is kind to her since her grandpa died a year earlier, after drinking ammonia. Required fields are marked *. 5: Max demonstrating his ability to complete complex tasks well; a well-known strength of an Asperger’s condition. We see it - and Max’s whole world - through his eyes, just as we see Mary’s through hers. I guess goldfish dying are inherently funny. The air has no barrier, boundary, or wall. It is 1976 and her dad, Noel, works in a factory attaching strings to tea bags; her mother, Vera (voiced by Renee Geyer), lives in a permanent haze caused by sherry and fags. I like being an "aspie"! She has been told that in Australia, they come from beer glasses. People aren’t defined by their mental illnesses. Many of the minor characters are very well drawn, but it is essentially a two-hander between Mary and Max. They've watched some fairly gory stuff (Aliens, The Passion) and some things with adult concepts and language (South Park - the word-censored tv version, not the movie). "Mary and Max" is a poignant story that chronicles a pen-pal relationship between two very different people which spans nearly 2 decades across 2 continents. Mary And Max is original, personal, funny and moving; a film of warmth and compassion from a major artist. His favourite movie is MIRACLE MILE, his favourite band is the Manic Street Preachers, and his favourite commenters are the ones who read the article first. Fig. The name she picks at random from a phone book is that of Max Horovitz. Human And Environmental Change: The Impact Of Climate Change In Africa. Header shows still from "On Our Way" by Ruth Hayes, with Artists permission". Been following your blog for a while. Theatrical Versions. He relies on his relationship with Mary to help field ideas and questions about his perspective of the world and “mental illnesses”. More recently, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention suggest a prevalence rate of closer to 1 in 88, and as many as 1 in 54 for boys (CDC, 2012). It's not for kiddies, either, unless you want to explain what prostitution, condoms and alcoholism are. “I do not feel disabled or defective” (Max, Mary a nd Max, 2009). All He writes back, with chocolate. I've got Aspergers. The film was produced by Melanie Coombs and Melodrama Pictures with music by Dale Cornelius. In fact, the film was so serious in parts that I began my "30 second censorship countdown". She decides to write to someone in New York for a comparison. MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - MARY & MAX Answer key: A. As part of his coping strategies, we hear Max reflecting on how he used to make notes in a book to help him navigate confusing facial expressions (see Fig. Fig. Max is a 6 feet 352 pounds obese man. she shouts. At school, one of her classmates pees in her lunch box. Mary and Max centres on an unlikely friendship between two people of varying degrees of instability. How THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE Pulled Off That Insane Single-Take Shot | Birth.Movies.Death. The most unexpected and powerful element of Mary and Max is the utter frankness with which it discusses mental illness. Thus begins a 20-year correspondence, interrupted by a stay in an asylum and a few misunderstandings. Max has a friendship with a neighbor, tries to control his weight, and finally gets the dream job. (2012). Most modern animation is made on computers. Max passes with one distant friend with whom he has never met. Everyone in the film is damaged; a few are suicidal and don't make it, so there's a sense of life's traumas. Mary and Max continue on with their lives for some time, each trying to cope with their troubles. Previously, Elliot has made four feature films: Uncle (1996), Cousin (1998), Brother (1999) and Harvie Krumpet (2003) which won Elliot an Oscar. 5). A tale of friendship between two unlikely pen pals: Mary, a lonely, eight-year-old girl living in the suburbs of Melbourne, and Max, a forty-four-year old, severely obese man living in New York. If we don’t treat people as people, we’re part of the problem. Twice the film that "up" was, should have won the academy award last year for best animated feature. Elliot is now 37 so he must have been about 17 when the pen-pal relationship began. Then there are the old-school stop-motion animators who work with their hands, the eccentrics and cranks who do it for love on the outer fringes of the film galaxy - such as Nick Park at Aardman in Bristol, creator of Wallace and Gromit. They kept at it for 57 weeks, during the actual shoot. Clues and contexts are explored (his behaviours and even the use of black and white footage used during scenes with Max; underlining his perspective of life) but a diagnosis is not presented clearly until 52 mins into the film. Fade out Narrator: Reflecting upon his views about horror movies, Danny Draven says, “The key to making a good horror movie is to focus on the things that people fear”. "Mary and Max" chronicles the lives of Mary, who grows up to become a successful writer, and Max, who grows from middle to old age. Dealing with complex issues in a heartfelt, honest, and empathetic way, Mary and Max is a must-see to understand how mental illness can colour, but not define someone’s personality. All Rights Reserved. Mr Erikson also tends to be somewhat vague about the difference experiences and events that mark between success and failure at each. Though living entirely different lives, the two bond over their mutual eccentricities and isolation: Mary Dinkle is a chubby, lonely eight-year-old with an unfortunate birthmark on her forehead. What the Rotten Tomatoes Critics are Saying: Thanks for highlighting this film Gavin, I had heard of it but knew nothing about it. Autism, 6, 231–37. They both have their degrees of instability. It kept surprising me. Adam Elliot won an Oscar a few years back for his 22-minute film, Harvie Krumpet. © … (2004). Notice how the word “disability” is underlined – twice. | Great movie! Andrew is a New Zealand-born writer, filmmaker, and theatre practitioner who sometimes lives in Canada.