Overview
What a way to kick start this year's NZ International Film Festival. Behind the Candelabra is all the glitz, glamour and plush fur coats it's been hyped up to be. The film explores the intense love affair between Scott Thorson (Matt Damon) and the hugely flamboyant pianist Lee Liberace, (Michael Douglas), who is 40 years his senior.
From the moment their eyes lock the chemistry between these two is intense. Liberace is bold is his advances and isn't afraid of anything. Except, that is, of being outed as a gay man. The fact his adoring fans don't realise he's no straight man seems hard to believe. But then this is the 1970s we're talking about.
Thorson utterly adores Liberace and will go to some pretty bizarre lengths to demonstrate that fact. Soon he's spiralling out of control but seems powerless to stop it. It's a testament to Damon that he manages to create such a relatable character out of such a troubled individual. Rob Lowe makes a very welcome appearance as plastic surgeon Dr Jack Startz. He brings much needed laughter to the darker second half of the film with his bizarrely frozen face, clearly a victim of his own medicine.
Liberace lived and loved in excess and that is faithfully captured in the countless set and costume changes in the film. What's more the way Damon and Douglas are physically transformed to represent their relationship over the years as well as their readiness to go under the knife is quite remarkable.
I'm not usually a great fan of biopics but this is an exception. Not only is the cinematography stunning and the acting superb but Behind the Candelabra manages to strike the perfect balance between comedy and tragedy.
To read the Concrete Playground Ten Must See Films at the New Zealand International Film Festival 2013, click here.