Man on the Moon (1999) on Netflix
R19991h 58mBiographyComedyDrama
Andy Kaufman's nightclub act fails when he sings the Mighty Mouse theme instead of telling jokes. His timid foreign man does an Elvis impersonation, and talent agent George Shapiro signs him.
- Netflix3.3/5
- IMDb7.4/10144,271 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes64%
Trailer
Plot summary
Andy Kaufman performs in nightclubs, where his act fails because he sings the Mighty Mouse theme song while the audience wants conventional jokes. His timid foreign man character then puts on a rhinestone jacket and does an Elvis impersonation, and the crowd realizes he has tricked them. After a similar trick on Saturday Night Live, talent agent George Shapiro signs him and lands him a television series, Taxi, which Kaufman dislikes because he does not care for sitcoms. The money, the visibility and a promise that he can make his own television special persuade him to accept, and his foreign man becomes the mechanic Latka Gravas. As his fame grows, audiences at his live shows want Latka, not the unusual material he prefers.
Cast
- Greyson Erik Pendryas Little Michael Kaufman (as Greyson Pendry)
- Brittany Colonnaas Baby Carol Kaufman
- Bobby Borielloas Little Andy Kaufman
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Man on the Moon (1999)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- After Lawler told Forman of Carrey's demands to do the piledriver stunt himself, Forman wrapped filming for the day. Carrey then spat in Lawler's face and Lawler pulled his hair and locked him in a sleeper hold, which led to Carrey being hospitalised with four compressed vertebrae.
- Carrey stayed in character as Kaufman on and off the set for the whole production, even developing unscripted tics that had been characteristic of Kaufman. Courtney Love noted that he would stuff his clothing with Limburger cheese when playing Tony Clifton, as Kaufman had done.
- Kevin Spacey, Edward Norton, Nicolas Cage, John Cusack and Hank Azaria all auditioned for the role of Andy Kaufman, and WCW wrestler Glenn Gilbertti, better known to wrestling fans as Disco Inferno, was considered for the role of Jerry Lawler.
- The soundtrack was written by R.E.M., whose 1992 song "Man on the Moon", originally written in honor of Kaufman, gave the film its title. It also included the Grammy-nominated "The Great Beyond", which remains the band's highest-charting single in the United Kingdom.
SPOILER
The famous Carnegie Hall "milk and cookies" show is portrayed in the film as one of Kaufman's last performances after his cancer diagnosis, but it had in fact taken place in 1979, five years before his death and well before that diagnosis.- The critics who felt the film misrepresented Kaufman included his own father, who was displeased that little of Andy's early life before show business and his early career were portrayed.
