Seeing this Andy Kaufman bio-pic is like being at a séance in a comedy club. Director Milos Forman and star Jim Carrey conjure up the spirit of their subject--that patron saint of the practical joke--with such effective Ouija-dom that at times it seems as if his ghost has taken over the film. Focused on Kaufman's celebrity years, when Taxi gave him the freedom to get away with his infamously ambitious and insane hoaxes ("inter-gender" wrestling, the advent of his vulgar alter-ego Tony Clifton), Man On the Moon features Kaufman's most famous shticks flawlessly recreated by the truly incredible Carrey in between sentimental peeks into his life. But while the movie pokes around in Kaufman's head a little, it doesn't really pull back the curtain on the man himself enough to completely satisfy. Recommended, with reservations. (R. Blackwelder)
[Blu-ray Review—Mar. 14, 2022—Kino Lorber, 118 min., R, Blu-ray: $29.95—Making its debut on Blu-ray, Man on the Moon (1999) is presented with a 2K digital transfer and extras including a new audio commentary by screenwriters Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, moderated by film historian Howard S. Berger; “This Might Be a Story, with Alexander and Karaszewski in conversation with Milos Forman (an excerpt from a recently recovered 1999 microcassette recording); a “making-of” featurette; deleted scenes; and two music videos by R.E.M. for “Man on the Moon” and “The Great Beyond.” Bottom line: Forman’s bio-pic benefits from a standout performance by Jim Carrey as late comic Andy Kaufman.]