Man On The Moon
"A Comic Wallop of a Movie!" -Peter Travers, ROLLING STONE
Based on the true story, Jim Carrey stunningly portrays the late Andy Kaufman -- considered to be one of the most innovative, eccentric and enigmatic comics of his time -- in Man On The Moon. "Jim Carrey is extraordinary." says The New York Post. "Jim Carrey may be a better Andy Kaufman than Andy Kaufman" writes Newsweek. Also starring Danny DeVito as Kaufman's manager, Courtney Love as the woman Andy falls in love with and Paul Giamatti as his best friend. You'll stand up and cheer for Carrey in one of the year's most entertaining movies!
Member Reviews
Good Movie - sampid
Carrey is brilliant as Kaufman. Some call it an imitation, though that seems overly simplified and absurd. That was an imitation along the lines of Geoffrey Rush in SHINE, or Hilary Swank in BOYS DON'T CRY, or Richard Farnsworth in THE STRAIGHT STORY. Sure, Carrey observes and uses the many Kaufman quirks without a fault, but his observation goes far beyond what any other actor seems capable of. Carrey is Andy Kaufman. So many seem unwilling to admit that Carrey can act.Good Movie (If you understand why Andy Kaufman is great) - TheShamus
I am old enough to recall some of Andy Kaufman's television appearances. He would appear on shows like "Flip Wilson", Saturday Night Live and "Evening at the Improv". If you have not seen Andy Kaufman in action -- it was definitely not a typical standup comedy routine. It was usually a skit or a premise ... sometimes involving improv. It was definitely original.
I must confess, I do entirely understand why Andy Kaufman stands out the the filmakers. Indeed, there is some tremendous talent here -- with an amazing acting job from Jim Carrey ... to a well written script ... and some excellent direction from the acclaimed Milos Foreman. The talent is all here -- but I admit to not completely understanding the phenomenon.
While Kaufman was still alive, I recall a televised comedy show, where the audience would feel his cancerous tumor. Funny ... well ... it's unique. Is it great? It all depends on your definition.
I didn't find the movie very funny at all -- and for a movie about a comedian, I'm not sure that is a good thing. However, comedy is subjective ... I will concede there are likely lots of people who find it very amusing.
If you are not interested in the subject matter, you are better to ZIP another title.
/\/\/\/\ the Shamus /\/\/\/\Earthman - caldegren
Jim Carrey inhabits the role of Andy Kaufman remarkably;his performance is eerily accurate. Yet, although I thought the film was overall a fascinating performance, my problem with most Hollywood biopics is that they don't delve more deeply into the darker side of their subjects and Andy Kaufman had a profoundly dark side. For example,in the movie, when he calls his family to tell them he has cancer, they callously hang up on him, accusing him of trying to fool them with a bad joke.I couldn't understand why they would do that. What the film doesn't tell you is that Andy regularly pretended he was dying with his family and at this ironic point, when he really is ill, the don't believe him anymore and are fed up with his brutal form of humour. What kind of person does it take to try to make your family believe you are terminally ill as a joke? And not once, but several times. What kind of torture is that to do to someone you care about? Where did that amount of rage come from? Yes, he was isolated, a loner when he was a child, but nothing that would indicate why he couldn't connect to friends and relatives. Even his close friends were treated to his cruel jokes and his inability to express more compassionate feelings. Yet, one of his best friends, who wrote a biography on Kaufman said that the most devastating experience for Andy was his being asked to leave the meditation group to which he belonged; it was incredibly crushing experience for him. I find that curious, considering he treated most colleagues and family with disdain and indifference. Why was the group so important to him? I would have liked to know more about this Andy Kaufman. Andy Kaufman was a brilliant and unique talent and what the movie did show was a complicated and difficult man, but they barely scraped the surface of an extremely complex and tragic figure.
Member Reviews
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Good Movie - sampid
Carrey is brilliant as Kaufman. Some call it an imitation, though that seems overly simplified and absurd. That was an imitation along the lines of Geoffrey Rush in SHINE, or Hilary Swank in BOYS DON'T CRY, or Richard Farnsworth in THE STRAIGHT STORY. Sure, ...Good Movie (If you understand why Andy Kaufman is great) - TheShamus
I am old enough to recall some of Andy Kaufman's television appearances. He would appear on shows like "Flip Wilson", Saturday Night Live and "Evening at the Improv". If you have not seen Andy Kaufman in action -- it was definitely not a typical standup ...Earthman - caldegren
Jim Carrey inhabits the role of Andy Kaufman remarkably;his performance is eerily accurate. Yet, although I thought the film was overall a fascinating performance, my problem with most Hollywood biopics is that they don't delve more deeply into the darker ...