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Man on the Moon
The story of the life and career of eccentric avant-garde comedian, Andy Kaufman.
1999 · Directed by Miloš Forman · 118 min · Comedy · Drama · History · Screenplay in the scene database · 11 frames
Tagline
Hello, my name is Andy and this is my movie.
Plot
Andy Kaufman is a struggling performer whose act fails in nightclubs because, while the audience wants comedy, he sings the Mighty Mouse theme song and refuses to tell conventional jokes. As the audience begins to believe that Kaufman may have no talent, his previously timid "foreign man" character puts on a rhinestone jacket and does a dead-on Elvis impersonation. The audience bursts into thunderous applause, realizing Kaufman had tricked them.
Soon after fooling the audience in Saturday Night Live, Kaufman catches the eye of talent agent George Shapiro, who signs him as a client and lands him a television series, Taxi, much to Kaufman's dismay, as he does not like sitcoms. Because of the money, visibility, and a promise that he can do his own television special, Kaufman accepts the role, turning his foreign man into a mechanic named Latka Gravas. Secretly, he hated doing the show and wanted to quit.
Invited to catch a different act at a nightclub, Shapiro witnesses a performance by lounge singer Tony Clifton, whom Kaufman wants to guest-star on Taxi. Backstage, when he meets Shapiro in person, Clifton takes off his sunglasses and reveals that he is actually Kaufman. Clifton is a "villain character" created by Kaufman and his creative partner, Bob Zmuda. Once again, the gag is on the audience.
Plot summary from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.
Crew
- Written by: Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski
- Cinematography: Anastas N. Michos
- Edited by: Lynzee Klingman, Christopher Tellefsen, Adam Boome
- Music: Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Bill Berry
- Production design: Patrizia von Brandenstein
- Produced by: Stacey Sher, Michael Shamberg, Danny DeVito
Cast
- Jim Carrey as Andy Kaufman / Tony Clifton
- Danny DeVito as George Shapiro
- Courtney Love as Lynne Margulies
- Paul Giamatti as Bob Zmuda
- Vincent Schiavelli as Maynard Smith
- Peter Bonerz as Ed Weinberger
- Jerry Lawler as Himself
- Gerry Becker as Stanley Kaufman
- Leslie Lyles as Janice Kaufman
- Greyson Erik Pendry as Little Michael Kaufman
Production
- Country: United States of America, Germany, Japan, United Kingdom
- Language: English
- Studios: Mutual Film Company, Universal Pictures, Jersey Films, Cinehaus
- Budget: $82,000,000
- Box office: $47,434,430
- Themes: show business, comedian, sexism, biography, pro wrestling, mentally unstable, stand-up comedian, pro wrestlers, biographical
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