Monday, May 27, 2013

Douglas Captures Flambouyant Liberace Character

Michael Douglas and Matt Damon were very brave to do “Behind the Candelabra,” an entertaining biopic of legendary gay performer Liberace.  Kudos go to the makeup artist or digital genius who transformed the actors from old to gay and back again.

Grotesque, vain and stupid best describe the characters in this melodrama.  Douglas plays Walter Lee Liberace and Damon is his young lover Scott who is not the brightest bulb.  Google Scott Thorson to update his sad story.

Noteworthy are the performances of Debbie Reynolds as Lee’s mom and Rob Lowe as the quack plastic surgeon and happy go lucky drug dispenser.  Reynolds does her Zsa Zsa imitation and Lowe is grotesquely transformed into a 70s nightmare.

For those who lack HBO, this is worth a view on DVD.  The costumes and sets are over the top and it captures the excesses of the era. 

2 comments:

Gene Johnson said...

Don't forget about Dan Aykroyd's portrayal of the slimy manager doing all he could to deny his employer's proclivities even after Liberace joined mama in the hereafter

Mike Barer said...

Glad to see you are keeping your blog going. It is a huge committment. Remember when everyone in my family was blogging? I'm know the last of our four to roll something out regularly.