Behind the Candelabra

Steven Soderbergh's passion project Behind the Candelabra—about the five-year love affair between legendary entertainer and showman Liberace (Michael Douglas) and Scott Thorson (Matt Damon), Liberace's live-in boy-toy (and, rather creepily, adopted son)—had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and made its American debut on HBO. There's definitely an edge of camp to be found in the excesses of Liberace's glitzy palace-like Las Vegas mansion—as well as his flamboyant wardrobe (both on and off the stage)—not to mention the savvy casting of Rob Lowe as a plastic surgeon with an unnaturally enhanced face (that can barely change expression). But there's no winking to the audience in the performances or in Soderbergh's direction of their intimate scenes, as Soderbergh and screenwriter Richard LaGravenese are more interested in the individuals behind the pose than in ridiculing Liberace's persona. The couple's sex life and Thorson's addictions are only part of the story of a complicated love affair tangled up in lust, obsession, control, and vanity. Nominated for 15 Emmy Awards (Douglas and Soderbergh won, as did the film itself) and the Palme d'Or at Cannes, this is highly recommended. (S. Axmaker)