Mary and Max

In 1976, eight-year-old Mary Daisy Dinkle lives a lonely life in Mount Waverley, Victoria, Australia. Her classmates tease her because of a birthmark on her forehead. Her distant father, Noel, and alcoholic, kleptomaniac mother, Vera, provide little support. Her only comforts are her pet rooster, Ethel; her favourite food, sweetened condensed milk; and a Smurfs-like cartoon show called The Noblets. While at the post office with her mother, Mary spots a New York City telephone book and, curious about Americans, decides to write to one. She randomly chooses Max Jerry Horowitz from the phone book and sends him a letter telling him about herself. Max is an overweight 44-year-old Jewish atheist who has trouble forming relationships due to various mental problems and a lack of social skills. Mary's letter initially gives him an anxiety attack, but he writes back, and the two become friends (partly due to their shared love of chocolate and The Noblets). Vera disapproves of Max due to the contents of his letter to Mary, so Mary tells him to send his letters to her agoraphobic neighbour, Len Hislop. Mary asks Max about love and sex after innocently hearing of it from one of her school peers, and he suffers a severe anxiety attack, being institutionalised for eight months. Upon being discharged, he wins the New York Lottery and uses the money to buy a lifetime supply of chocolate and an entire collection of Noblet figurines, fulfilling two of his lifetime goals. He gives the remainder to his elderly neighbour, Ivy, who pampers herself before dying in a jet pack-related accident. Later, Mary becomes despondent, thinking Max has abandoned her. Max finally writes back to Mary, explaining he has been diagnosed with Asperger syndrome and describing several aspects of it which effect his life. The two continue their correspondence for the next several years. When Noel retires, he takes up metal detecting and is swept away by a large tidal bore while on a beach. The now-adult Mary goes to the University of Melbourne. She has her birthmark removed and develops a crush on her neighbour, Greek-Australian Damien Popodopoulos. While grieving over her late husband, Vera accidentally grabs and drinks a bottle of embalming fluid instead of her cooking sherry, dying as a result. Mary and Damien later marry, although Damien is shown to be uncomfortable being intimate with her. Mary studies psychology and writes her doctoral dissertation on finding a cure for Asperger syndrome with Max as her case study, despite his previous statements about not needing or wanting to be cured. She sends Max a copy and he is left furious, believing she has taken advantage of him. He breaks off communication with Mary by removing the letter "M" from his typewriter and mailing it to her. In response, Mary has the entire run of her book pulped, ending her career as a writer. She becomes depressed and begins drinking. She finds a can of condensed milk and writes "I'm Sorry" on it, sending it to Max as an apology. Afterwards, she finds a letter from Damien informing her that he has left her for his own pen pal, New Zealand sheep farmer Desmond, as a result of her depression. After strangling a homeless man in anger over him throwing a cigarette butt on the ground, Max finds that everyone is imperfect, including himself. He sends Mary his Noblet figurine collection as a gesture of forgiveness. Mary fails to find the box on her doorstep for several days. Unaware she is pregnant with Damien's child, Mary tries to take her own life. Having finally conquered his agoraphobia, Len interrupts her suicide and alerts her of Max's package, and Mary decides not to continue her attempt. A letter from Max tells her of his realisation that they are not perfect. He also states how much their friendship means to him and hopes their paths will cross one day. One year later, Mary travels to New York with her infant child to visit Max. However, upon entering his apartment, Mary discovers Max dead on his couch, gazing upward and smiling. Mary finds all the letters she sent Max over the years taped to the ceiling. Seeing how much Max valued their friendship, Mary cries tears of joy as she sits beside him on the couch.

Plot from Mary and MaxCC BY-SA 4.0