Review of Behind the Candelabra (2013) by Tom R — 07 Feb 2014

There seems to be lots of Liberace lately.

The HBO biopic "Behind the Candelabra" focuses on the last 10 years of the life of Liberace (Michael Douglas) and his volatile love affair with Scott Thorson (Matt Damon). At one point, Liberace was the world's highest-paid entertainer in the world during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The mark of a great actor (as opposed to a good actor) is that a great actor will immerse himself in every aspect of the character's life. I watched Douglas intently for about 10-15 minutes and after that, he transformed into the role of Liberace. He embodied his every mannerism, gesture, nuance, and voice inflection. In essence, he BECOMES Liberace.

Both Douglas and Damon have both publicly acknowledged that the intimate scenes were the most difficult and challenging - the kissing, the cuddling, the ass swapping, and the mock fucking. But the actors embrace their affections seamlessly and go through the motions convincingly and without hesitation, which adds a level of authenticity to the story that would have made Liberace proud.

One of the most contradictory realities and striking sub-themes of the movie is how much and to what extent that Liberace's promoters and public relations people went to hide his obvious sexual orientation. The myth of his heterosexuality was falsely fed and plugged into the media while Thorson catered to the flamboyant piano player's every need as his companion, on-stage chauffeur, and dancer.

The film's most unusual scene is when Liberace watches his guest spot on the "Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" and he is appalled by his facial appearance, wrinkles and all, so he decides to get plastic surgery. Liberace, showing off his narcissistic tendencies, suggests to Thorson that he get a chin and nose job along with cheek implants to create the illusion of younger image of himself.

Anyway, if you haven't seen the movie, you should definitely watch it on HBO -or- wait for it to come out on DVD. Besides "American Hustle" (which is a must-see because of the Best Original Screenplay plus Amy Adams', Jennifer Lawrence's, and Bradley Cooper's Oscar-worthy acting performances), "Behind the Candelabra" is one of the best movies of 2013. Both Douglas and Damon were nominated for Best Actor in a TV movie -or- miniseries, but it was Douglas who took away the Emmy and Golden Globe.

By the way, if you missed it on August 29, 2013, you need to watch Bill Murray on the 20th Anniversary episode of "The Late Show with David Letterman." Go to YouTube to watch an outlandish and hilarious rendition of the late great Liberace.