Day 16 - Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond


Day 16               Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond [2017 documentary]
                          
Director                          Chris Smith
Cinematography           Brantley Gutierrez
Subject                            Behind-the-scenes footage of Jim Carrey portraying Andy Kaufman in 1999 film Man on the Moon.        
Production                      VICE films (Spike Jonze)

IMDb                                        7.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes                 100%

This is up there with my favourite documentaries. A lot riding on whether you like Jim Carrey or not BUT THAT SHOULDN’T STOP YOU WATCHING THIS FILM. I don’t understand those who don’t like Carrey, or those that say he has gone crazy recently. He is a seriously talented man who is often misunderstood, and at his peak was the highest paid actor in Hollywood. The Truman Show, The Mask, Ace Ventura, Bruce Almighty, Eternal Sunshine, Dumb and Dumber, Me, Myself & Irene, the list goes on and on and even if you hate one or all of those films, you can’t deny that a lot of people love them and Carrey is the leading man. I grew up thinking he was the funniest guy I’d ever seen, I loved his movies. Yes, looking back on Ace Ventura and The Mask they are pretty dumb, but it doesn’t take away from Carrey’s performances. I can still sing all the words to 'Cuban Pete'. Anyhow, this film is all about Carrey going into Daniel Day-Lewis mode whilst portraying Andy Kaufman in Man on the Moon. It’s full method. It shows Carrey’s mental side, but it’s not Carrey, it’s Andy, or it’s Tony Clifton, and underneath it’s Carrey, and no-one knows what is going on. Not even Carrey himself. But it’s brilliant! Watching an actor go into the mind of another human being and not imitate, but become that person, to the point where Andy’s own family and friends said that it was like having Andy back (Kaufman died relatively young from lung cancer, which his friends and family thought was another of his gags). The film shows old footage mixed in with Carrey being interviewed about it now. It works very well and we see a side to him that isn’t too crazy, he’s relatively switched on considering he has one of the most recognisable faces in film and has been a global superstar, exposed to all the horrible publicity that is common in this media saturated world. I totally agreed with Carrey’s comment on the fact that the behind-the-scenes stuff was the real film, they should have intercut it with the real movie. I am sure I will be disappointed if I watch Man on the Moon having watched this. I won’t go into any more detail. It’s not my style. Just trust me and watch this shit. It’s epic.

Subject Matter               3.5 / 4
Shock Factor                  3.5 / 4
Production                         3 / 4
Music                                  2 / 4

HWF rating                  4 / 4