The sounds of Donna Summer swell, a vintage HBO logo splashes on screen, and Behind the Candelabra clicks into gear, immediately plunging the audience into a bar-side interaction between the sweet Scott Thorson (Matt Damon, Promised Land) and the seasoned Bob Black (Scott Bakula, Source Code). The first meeting between the animal trainer and the fictionalised Hollywood producer would change the course of entertainment history, their friendship paving the way for a tumultuous romance first confined to palatial mansions then splashed across the tabloids: that of Thorson and acclaimed pianist Liberace (Michael Douglas, Haywire).
Based on Thorson’s 1988 book of the same name, Behind the Candelabra tells a tale of love and life lived at the lavish end of the spectrum, and the ranch-raised, troubled teenager who gets swept up in the excess. The awe when the young hunk meets the musical maestro is palpable, as is the flirtatious innuendo, their profound spark leading to Thorson’s immersion in Liberace’s personal and professional dealings. Swiftly, Liberace becomes not just Thorson’s lover, but his friend and family; however the cost of his affection is considerable. Their five-year affair swoops from the highs of matching outfits and plastic surgery to the lows of drug addiction and adultery, before coming to its inevitable conclusion.
Made for US cable television, but filled with dazzling details that shine on a cinema screen, Steven Soderberg’s latest and purported last proper directorial effort (after feature release Side Effects) combines spectacle with intimacy. With screenwriter Richard LaGravenese (Beautiful Creatures) on adaptation duty, the film revels in Liberace’s largesse as it lingers in luxurious surrounds and laps up his flamboyant demeanour, yet never fails to show the man – and his many miseries and manipulations – behind the sparkle and sheen.
Indeed, Soderberg knows the value of plumbing the depths in his insider portrait; there’s a reason the film and its source material are called Behind the Candelabra, after all. Glitz and glamour run rampant, but its artifice is evident, for beneath the show and spectacle lurks the darkness of the flipside of fame and fortune. Visually, the director revels in the details the comparison bring, all diamond-encrusted furnishings and fake smiles; thematically, his pursuit of the contrast behind the dream and the reality is no less affecting in its cyclical obviousness. There’s empathy in his approach, but also a steely-eyed analysis of the true price of the entertainment industry.
Of course, even with such confident handling of the true-life tale, the entire feature rests on its stellar performances. Playing a character decades younger than his actual age, Damon brings a convincing sense of naivety to Thorson, providing the perfect foil to Douglas’ career-best combination of predatory charm and extravagant camp. A tightened, sleaze-heightened Rob Lowe (TV’s Parks and Recreation) steals every scene he’s in, but he never takes the spotlight from the spot-on, Emmy-nominated central couple. Their efforts command curiousity, elicit affection and seethe with honesty, just like the film itself, in a fitting tribute to its inspiration.
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Behind the Candelabra
Directors: Steven Soderbergh
USA, 2013, 118 mins
Release date: 25 July
Distributor: Roadshow
Rated: M
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