Man on the Moon 1999, Rated R Universal

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Starring Jim Carrey, Danny DeVito, et al. Released to DVD on May 30, 2000.

Throughout his career, actor Jim Carrey has delighted in surprising the American movie-going public. In the original Ace Ventura, Carrey's goofy and flatulent charm took the world by storm; he was the lone bright spot as The Riddler in Joel Schumacher's plastic explosive, Batman Forever and here in Man on the Moon, Carrey's performance as the late comedian Andy Kaufman is so amazingly well done, I find it hard to believe that the man didn't even get nominated for an Academy Award as Best Actor. Starring as the unusually comedic Kaufman, Carrey portrays the comic from his rise to fame on the club comedy circuit through his eccentric career bests to his untimely and fatal bout with lung cancer. Man on the Moon was written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski and directed by Milos Forman, the team that last brought us The People Vs. Larry Flynt. And in many ways, Man on the Moon is very similar to that 1997 film. But, while both are biopics about the lives of two truly unique individuals, Man on the Moon stands head and shoulders above The People Vs. Larry Flynt because the material is presented in a much smoother fashion. With one event begetting another event and so forth, I never found myself wondering when characters were going to return, or if I missed some pertinent information when Forman chose to ignore a lengthy period of time in the lead character's life. Carrey's composure as Kaufman is solid and his portrayal of Kaufman's alter ego, lounge singer Tony Clifton miraculous. This was an upbeat and funny movie that deserves significantly more recognition than it received.

chris neumer