"He'd always wanted a friend. A friend that wasn't invisible, a pet or rubber figurine."

Mary and Max (2009)
Directed by Adam Elliot, not rated, 92 minutes

Mary and Max is a heartwarming and quirky stop motion film about an unlikely friendship between two penpals - a young girl in Australia, and an offbeat, obese man in New York. Philip Seymour Hoffman is perfect as the New Yorker, offering a completely convincing voice, and his character is given plenty of wonderfully absurd lines. While the stop motion animation is impressive and sometimes dazzling, it's the deeply personal and touching story that makes the film so powerful. Mary and Max isn't afraid to show the harsh realities of the world, and at times the film is really dark, but it makes the main characters' beautiful friendship all the more magnificent. You'll like it if: You like films about friendship, dark humor, stop motion animation, The Station Agent or About Schmidt.