Mary and Max

It was one of those unlikely days. I can’t remember what exactly happened that day. I only remember fuming because my sister decided to watch a show I had no interest in seeing, so I left our room to my dad’s and turned on his own TV. That was when I saw this movie. I had come just in time for the opening scene, and I don’t think I moved from where I was seated till the very end of the film. I remember crying at some points, but I was quite young then, so I can’t recollect why.

Mary and Max (2009)

It’s the year 1976, and we see Mary Daisy Dinkle, a lonely eight-year-old who lives in Melbourne, Australia with her kleptomaniac mother, Vera. Mary has no friends and only finds solace in her pet rooster, Ethel. Her favourite food is sweetened condensed milk, and her comfort show is a cartoon called The Noblets. On the day Mary follows her mom to the post office, she finds a New York telephone book and decides to find someone to write to. She chooses Max Horowitz, a forty-four year old, Jewish atheist, and writes him a letter telling him all about herself, hoping for a reply and a potential friend.

This is a coming-of-age film that tells the story of Mary and Max, two of the most unusual people who become the most unusual friends. Bound by their sheer differences in life and background, these two forge a bond like no other. Through the times and ages in each other’s lives, their letters become their core until…

Mary and Max is the type of movie where you just stay quiet as soon as the credits roll. You’re transfixed in a position and trying to assimilate everything, or simply comprehend the volume of what you just watched. That’s how I was. I know I didn’t fully understand the gravity of what I’d just seen, but it hit differently. Watching Mary and Max evolve into older people. Same souls but different people now. It was beautiful like that.

I can’t say too much about the film because I’m afraid of giving spoilers, although it’s the type of movie that you can’t fully describe unless you see it yourself. So, for the one hour and thirty-four minutes of this film, I lived and learned with these people I don’t know personally, and won’t ever know. I couldn’t find a fault in this film if I tried. It was just that perfect, even with the sad and unlikely happenings, there was comfort in it regardless.

I don’t know if to find it nice or slightly grating how underrated this film is. I think I was ten or less when I saw it, but even back then, I remember how deeply a cord was struck in me watching this. For a film packed with so many lessons and knowledge, I wonder why this movie isn’t talked about that much. But it is a movie everyone needs to watch. No matter your age, culture, or even orientation, you will find this film as more than just a memorable experience, it will be an invaluable piece fixated in your core. What I would call the true definition of a masterpiece. Hope you enjoy!

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