R.E.M released a song called "Man on the Moon" on their Automatic For The People album in 1992, and by 1999 it became the title of the movie honoring the song's subject, Andy Kaufman. Kaufman was a weird, weird man, but with Jim Carrey's portrayal in this film, we discover he's not quite as weird as we thought. Whether or not Kaufman would have wanted it that way is up for debate.
Kaufman's comedy career was built on being strange, creating elaborate pranks or abrasive on-stage characters like crappy abusive lounge singer Tony Clifton or his villainous pro wrestling caricature of himself (at the time, pro wrestling was the ultimate form of continual tricking of the audience into believing it was real, which fit Kaufman like a glove), and he refused to ever let the audience in on the joke. No winks, no big reveals at the end, nothing. Man on the Moon, however, exists to do just that - let people know that he was just messing with people. Carrey's metamorphosis into Kaufman reportedly included remaining in character off-camera and pulling stunts similar to the man he was betraying, never breaking character even when people were begging for it.
Danny DeVito also stars as Kaufman's manager, one of the few people who got him, and Paul Giamatti plays his best friend Bob Zmuda, his partner in crime. Courtney Love, in her non-train-wreck period, is also on hand as Kaufman's gal Lynne Margulies. David Letterman and Jerry Lawler even took part to recreate the infamous confrontation Lawler and Kaufman staged on Letterman's show.
Check it out for yourself, and learn just why Andy Kaufman is so revered among comedians for his fearlessness, daring and genius.
Watch the trailer for Man on the Moon.
Watch the full movie.
