This movie proves the brilliance of Adam Elliot (writer and director). Somehow Adam Elliott took the simple and mundane premise of an Australian girl becoming pen-pals with a New Yorker that has asperger syndrome and turned it into a movie I couldn’t stop watching. Movies like this restore my faith in cinema.

I appreciated the dark / alternative claymation only so much before it got a little agenda commentary oriented. The overall feel didn't resonate either. I saw it since it was on the IMDb 250 list and I expect it was well received by cult classic followers for its bizarreness. I don't plan to see it again. RUS.

The style, the story, the soundtrack are all utterly superb. This is for sure one of the most touching and wholesome movies I have ever seen.

such a heartwarming film. wish it was more viewed.

Very goofy yet touching movie. I however wouldn’t recommend it to children. Some of the content is inappropriate for little ones

One of my favourite movies, a superb story with unexpectedly touching animation and a great soundtrack

A creative, sad, emotional and poignant film with a deeply moving ending.

A heavy dose of existential angst is probably the last thing you’d expect when settling in for an exercise in Claymation, but that’s exactly what you’re going to get with Mary and Max…and, surprisingly, that’s not a bad thing. Mary is a young girl from Australia, tormented by her classmates, ignored by her father, and disillusioned by her troubled mother. Max is a middle-aged New Yorker who suffers from Asperger Syndrome, living a life of solitude in his squalid apartment. When the two start an unlikely pen pal relationship, they begin to find meaning in their otherwise meaningless lives. The characters are well-defined, the stop motion animation is as good as it gets, the writing is insightful, and the voice work of Toni Collette and Philip Seymour Hoffman is subdued and impactful throughout. While it’s not exactly uplifting, it leans towards inspirational, but never in a soppy way, and is well worth checking out.

A lonely adolescent girl reaches out to a random person in New York and finds Max, a Jewish atheist, and become pen pals. A remarkably human story of love, life, and friendship. I had no idea that was Hoffman but so happy to enjoy one more performance by the late actor. It's a bleak tale populate with the flavor of reality. Very heavy for an animated film. Highly recommended.

Stop-motion Claymation are considerably jewel gems with dedicated patience in the painstaking craft, boosting the storyteller's compelling directorial vision as realized magnum opus. This unique caricature-designed dramedy provides generally charming flair over its societal satire with amusing observations balanced with harsh reality and heartened by the well-cast performances, even if mildly accepted whilst discomforted over its occasional bleakness and uncanny weirdness. (B+)

A genuine work of art!

I watched this sick at 1am and it had me in tears by the end.

What a complex and sad film. I live in Australia and I totally get how the director writer has shown what Australia is like. Life can be that empty for most people. Especially in Melbourne and Victoria. It's so sad. It's also a tragedy even in the film that Max can be so irate that someone would write a book about him and hope to solve Asperger syndrome. One would think they would be honoured. It's so sad. It's also incredible how much work went into this film. That doing it and stop motion takes so much longer than with actors. Maybe it was cheaper but the cast is international. Maybe they did it more out of love than money. I read it took more than a year just for the stop motion graphics alone. It's an incredible amount of work. But it's so sad. Just so sad. This emptiness of life. For so many people. Asperger's or not. Just so sad. Five stars without a doubt for the work that went into it. But it's just so sad. So meaningless. After all that.

Maybe my favorite animate movie

Damm, this one hit like brick wall. Beautifully sad but hopefully.

It's great movie. I enjoyed the story. It's more for adults. The animation was enjoyable as well. The last part got me.

I watched "Mary and Max" on Tubi, for free. It's wonderfully poignant, a story of a lonely little girl in Australia and a lonely man in New York City. They become pen pals through many troubles. This is not a kiddie film. It's stop-action animation that deals with such deep issues as alcoholism, death, and mental health issues. It also deals with common issues of loneliness, bullying and fears. I smiled, laughed, cried. All that. It's deep, so expect it. I think it'll be worth your time!

A movie about two strangers who become friends while living a life worth nothing. Amazing movie. I did absolutely love watching this.

"Mary and Max" is a poignant and deeply human story about loneliness and friendship. This movie really warmed my heart and I think the story it is trying to tell is really well suited for stop-motion animation as an art form. The movie hits a lot of touching themes and tells a compelling story between two very different pen pals who find a real connection. I do feel stop-motion isn't always my animation style of choice, but I think this is the type of story that is meant to make the viewer uncomfortable at times, so I feel like it works. Overall, it is a movie that is from the heart and a top-tier animated movie that tells a truly sweet and down-to-earth story.

chef kiss* I have mix emotions while watching this animated film, the story, the animation, is perfect! Kudos to the voice actors, writer, director, and to everyone behind this beautiful absorbing insightful film. I wish I could hug Max 🥲