Before seeing *[Man on the Moon](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0125664/)*, I had no idea who Andy Kaufman was. 
To say that he was before my time would be, I think, an understatement. He had that odd way of transcending time that only geniuses have. He was truly one of a kind. 

![motm_photo_francois_duhamel_195_copy_-_h_2017.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmfVGmvHVVRpVrdN3cQTU1xVfowH53z1HvpCa4zM7YdTjd/motm_photo_francois_duhamel_195_copy_-_h_2017.jpg)
*[Image](https://www.google.ro/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjCo5rI3YHYAhUQbVAKHWJzA4gQjhwIBQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hollywoodreporter.com%2Fnews%2Fjim-carrey-relives-playing-andy-kaufman-jim-andy-great-beyond-1050433&psig=AOvVaw2zDBpN0-iEt2yYiu36QYuA&ust=1513073015679600)*

But I didn't know that yet. All I knew of this Andy Kaufman were some R.E.M. lyrics. 
*'I'm pushing an elephant up the stairs'* 
*'Over my shoulder a piano falls'*
*'I'm looking for answers from the Great Beyond'*
Extraordinary lyrics for an extraordinary man. Now, after hearing such wonderfully insane words, I had to know who this guy was. 

> [Andy] didn't like structures that were expected to be.

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Andy was one of the most absurd, most crazy people I have ever seen in my life. A comedian unlike any comedian you're likely to come upon. What made him so unique was the fact that he didn't care, that he didn't want to be like anything you've seen before, that he wanted to challenge stereotypes and keep the audience guessing. Forever surprised, not knowing what he would do next. He wanted to see how far he could take things and played these insane characters, like the Foreign Man, who spoke in his high-pitched voice and lip-synced to the Mighty Mouse theme. He just had you in stitches as soon as he opened his mouth. 
But you already know that, since you're reading this, because this isn't about the greatness of Andy Kaufman. Not only about that. It's about the incredible transformation that Jim Carrey underwent to play Andy Kaufman. 

> Every time you open your mouth, you learn something about yourself.

But he didn't just play his hero, he *was* his hero. You know how you hear about actors becoming a character? You never think they really do, not fully, that they're still somehow in control. And while you can't know for sure what went on,  *[Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt7214762/?ref_=nv_sr_3)* sees Carrey lose control. He is the embodiment of Andy Kaufman. 
The story seems too poetical, too good to be true. It's an oasis of every artist, the idea that you can become one with your art and that you can be anything. Yet, the documentary, which was largely filmed on the set of *Man on the Moon*, tells you that it's not just an oasis. That it's actually possible to let go of who you are and become someone else. It's mind blowing.

> I learned that you can fail at what you don't love, so you might as well do what you love. There's really no choice to be made.

In  *Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond*, Carrey speaks of Andy Kaufman being *“on his own wavelength”*, which he – Carrey – somehow manages to break into. It's a heartwarming film for both Carrey fans and Kaufman lovers alike (well, for anyone, really). He becomes  Andy so much that you can mistake him for the real thing (apparently, Andy's own family did treat him as one of their own, so he must've done something right).
![biopic-actors-jim-carrey.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmYLaKQ1EXUmvbBurmegHtEBZDv7RTmDNrngeWuXH9Q95z/biopic-actors-jim-carrey.jpg)
*[Image](https://www.google.ro/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj5v6ay74DYAhXPDuwKHc7cAtQQjhwIBQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wetpaint.com%2Fbiopic-actors-vs-real-life-counterparts-1615135%2F&psig=AOvVaw1g_VU4dUaFs5NteFGYbWSz&ust=1513044088800538)*

If Andy Kaufman managed to capture his audience through his uniqueness and unpredictability, Jim Carrey seduces you with the passion that he put in becoming Andy, with his ability to let go. Because Carrey, in a way, takes the same leap of faith into the great beyond that Andy took so long ago. Only in Carrey's case, it's even more frightening, because he plunges into the depths of someone else, he allows Jim to go, to leave him, so that he can be someone else, so that he can experience life as Andy. 

> The choices make you.

As I said, it hits a soft spot for all Kaufman fans, but not only, because in this movie, although it's centered around Andy, Jim Carrey is the real star and manages to surprise you – the audience. For me, as an artist, it's an insight into the life of a man who seems so far away – Andy Kaufman – but who was so brilliant, it'd be a shame not to know him. The documentary reminded me that there are no barriers, that I can do the craziest things if I believe in them. And as a human being, that I can just be. 

> To me, Andy *was* the great beyond.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB15UFO5ebA
*[Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond Trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB15UFO5ebA)*

If you haven't seen it already, I highly recommend it. You're in for a mind-numbing surprise. And on the off-chance you haven't seen *Man on the Moon* either, see that, too. There aren't a whole lot of great movies around, it'd be a shame to miss out. 

*Quotes: Jim Carrey (Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond)*