TV watcher

Man on the Moon

review by Orlando C. Fernando

January 9, 2000

Storyline: 8
Originality: 8
Acting: 8
Special Effects: 0
Overall: B+/A-

The life of the late Andy Kaufman has finally been made into a movie.
This movie had been anticipated for over a year, hyped up by Jim Carrey, who plays the lead role, and Jerry "The King" Lawler of WWF wrestling fame. This biography tries to put Andy's comic genius and eccentric personality all into perspective. For those unaware (or not born yet) of who Andy Kaufman is, he was best known as his role as Latka, a naive immigrant taxi driver, on the 70's TV show "Taxi". But this movie explores all aspects of his life, which put together is a lot more interesting than just his sitcom life. Starting off as a little boy who always wanted to perform to an audience, but settled for his excited little sister, he grew up and became a struggling lounge singer doing song parodies. The "Taxi" sitcom producer (Danny Devito, who also was originally an actor on "Taxi") discovers him and wants him to be part of the show. We are then taken into his sitcom life and quickly learn he was destined for more than just a TV show. This starts an array of bizarre promotions, including New Age meditation sessions, leading a double life as a false lounge singer, and picking wrestling fights with women and eventually Jerry Lawler (as himself). It was during a wrestling stint that he meets his future wife (Courtney Love) who seems to be the main source of stability in Andy's life. A secondary source is routine New Age meditation sessions which he devotes to as religiously as his wife.

It didn't feel like it was meant to solely humor us nor impress us.
In fact, the timing between comedy and drama seem similar to "The Truman Show," a movie I thoroughly enjoyed. It seems to balance various anecdotes of his pranks and jokes with how it all fit into what his real goal was in his entertainment life: to amaze and shock the audience and give them something continuously different to make them come back for more. Right up to his death, we learn that every far fetched scheme he has successfully pulled, insane as they are, were all part of his goal. And it really makes us wonder if he really was insane or just a bit over the top.

D anny Devito did an excellent role being Andy's watchman as well as business associate.
It must have been especially hard for him to do such a role dealing with a former "Taxi" co-star. Somehow I feel a little sadness in him even in the beginning, giving the atmosphere a little bit of melancholy. Courtney Love impressed me for the first time I saw her doing an acting role. In addition, I could not believe that they rounded up nearly all the original stars from "Taxi" (minus Tony Danza). Some of the cast, however, are showing age - but it was gentlest to the lovely Marilu Henner. They disappointingly had minor speaking roles in the movie, but there was enough to make the original "Taxi" seem authentic - right down to the laugh track. Lorne Michaels also appears here reverting to his young 1970's look for Andy's early appearances on the TV comedy-music show "Saturday Night Live". Even the king of late night talk shows David Letterman appears here to recreate one of the on-screen confrontations between Jerry and Andy.

J im Carrey was rightly chosen for this colorful biography.
From the start of the movie in which he displays funny false ending credits to the end of the movie where we see one of his comic routines, Jim becomes Andy to a perfect T. There are definite slow points in the drama (a bit too slow at times), but then the pace suddenly picks up rapidly. I am also glad they attempt to put to rest whether or not the whole wrestling women incident was a gimmick. Worth the price of admission. A Malcolm X biography it is not, but should the life of a comic be so serious?

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