Review of Behind the Candelabra (2013) by Javier D — 01 Jun 2013

I came to this film, as a boomer who grew up with the eccentric but supremely talented Liberace always around, and also as a great admirer of both the main leads, Damon and Douglas. And I think they did everything they could with what they got from teh scriptwriters and director.

But, for me this film sagged and dragged its way through two unsurprising hours, dwelling on Liberace's strangeness and Scott's obtusity, adding no insights to what we already knew, figuring that if the sets and costumes were eye-grabbing enough, who needs story development, who needs any effort to go deeper into the mind sets behind this sad story.

By the closing scene at Liberace's funeral, we get nothing more profound than Scott fantasizing a grander finale from the great showman, something that anyone could have imagined, without the more troubling insider view that Scott ought to have developed.

Seeing this sitting at 91%, the stratum that truly great pics only should be reacing, really makes me wonder what film criticism has come to.