DIRECTOR
Milos Forman

CAST
Jim Carrey, Danny DeVito, Courtney Love, Paul Giamatti

MPAA RATING
R

RUNNING TIME
119 Minutes

STUDIO
Universal

Most people have seen, read, or heard something about the misunderstood comic. From his wrestling match with Jerry Lawler to his appearances on the hit show "Taxi". Carrey makes this movie a documentary, a sort of a filmed biography rather than a motion picture. It's a character study in the surest way.

Carrey dominates the entire film. Even when he's not on screen, you're dying to see him appear again, whether it's as Andy Kauffman or as his alter-ego Toni Clifton. The Clifton character is kind of the comic relief in this film. He's a disgusting arrogant pig, yet he's a joy to watch.

The movie doesn't cover all of Kauffman's life, how could it? If that were the case, the movie would have been about 8 hours. Clocking in just under 2, "Man on the Moon" does show the highlights of the comedian's career.

The first half of the film was much more enjoyable than the latter. With about 30 minutes left in the film, it switches the gears into drama mode, as you find out about Kauffman getting cancer.

This dramatic part of the film, and which is also the most important, is handled rather sloppy by director Milos Forman. The man spends the whole movie showing Kauffman's snippets, then decides to cram in the last part with the cancer story.

The film feels rushed after you see the funeral. It's as though some studio executive said, "I'm sorry, Milos, but you're gonna have to show Kauffman's life story under 2 hours, because we don't think it'll test well with audiences if it's longer than that."

Well, this story should have been longer. It deserves to at least reach the 2 � hour plateau. That way, we can see 30 more minutes of Jim Carrey playing his idol.