"Jim & Andy" falls somewhere between being a behind-the-scenes doc about the making of "Man On The Moon" and an "Adaptation" (2002) style meta-narrative in which fictionalized protagonist Jim Carrey, played by non-fictional actor Jim Carrey, detaches from reason and basic self-preservation instincts in his effort to go totally method on an Andy Kaufman biopic. Carrey does an incredible Kaufman impersonation in the theatrical film released in 1999, and "Jim & Andy" demonstrates the sometimes dangerous, occasionally heart warming, and always baffling lengths Carrey went to, in order to make good and certain he nailed the part.
"Universal didn't want the footage we took behind the scenes to surface, so that people wouldn't think I was an a**hole," Carrey explains in the trailer. Indeed, "Jim & Andy" depicts him as unhinged and ruthlessly abusive towards his co-stars and crew. But is it really Jim Carrey playing Andy Kaufman going out of his way to ruin "Man On The Moon"? Or is that Andy Kaufman playing Jim Carrey playing Andy Kaufman going out of his way to ruin "Man On The Moon"? Yeah, that's the kind of movie this is — and the critics adored it.
