Behind the Candelabra

Behind the Candelabra

The back of a man in a long white fur jacket, bathed in a blue light.

Television release poster
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Produced by Gregory Jacobs
Susan Ekins
Michael Polaire
Screenplay by Richard LaGravenese
Based on Behind the Candelabra: My Life with Liberace 
by Scott Thorson
Alex Thorleifson
Starring Michael Douglas
Matt Damon
Dan Aykroyd
Scott Bakula
Rob Lowe
Debbie Reynolds
Music by Marvin Hamlisch
Cinematography Peter Andrews
Edited by Mary Ann Bernard
Production
company
Distributed by HBO
Release dates
  • May 21, 2013 (2013-05-21) (Cannes)
  • May 26, 2013 (2013-05-26) (United States)
Running time
 118 minutes[1]
Country United States
Language English
Budget $23 million[2]
Box office $13.4 million[3] (Foreign)

Behind the Candelabra is a 2013 American drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh. It dramatizes the last ten years in the life of pianist Liberace and the relationship he had with Scott Thorson. It is based on Thorson’s memoir, Behind the Candelabra: My Life with Liberace (1988).[4] Richard LaGravenese wrote the screenplay. Jerry Weintraub was the executive producer. It premiered at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival on May 21, 2013 and competed for the Palme d'Or.[5] It aired on HBO on May 26, 2013 and was given a cinematic release in the United Kingdom on June 7, 2013.[6] The film received general acclaim from television critics including praise for the performances of Michael Douglas and Matt Damon.

Plot

In 1977, 18-year-old Scott Thorson (Matt Damon), who works as an animal trainer for films, meets Bob Black (Scott Bakula), a Hollywood producer, in a gay bar in Los Angeles. At Black's urging, he leaves his adopted home in search of better-paying work. Black introduces Thorson to Liberace (Michael Douglas), who takes an immediate liking to the handsome younger man. Liberace invites the two backstage and then to his luxurious home in Las Vegas. Thorson observes that one of Liberace's beloved dogs is suffering from a temporary form of blindness, and with his veterinary assistant background, informs the famous pianist that he knows how to cure the condition. After treating the dog, Thorson becomes Liberace's "assistant" at the performer's request.

Thorson moves in with Liberace and becomes his lover. At this point, Thorson says that he is bisexual because he is also attracted to women. Liberace is sympathetic, informing him that he wanted and tried to love women, but was exclusively attracted to men. He relates a story of a "divine healing" in which a "messenger" informed him that God still loved him.

It gradually becomes clear that Liberace is trying to mold Thorson into a younger version of himself. He asks his plastic surgeon, Dr. Jack Startz (Rob Lowe), to transform Scott's face to more closely resemble his own and makes an unsuccessful attempt to formally adopt him. Thorson soon turns to drugs as he becomes more angry and frustrated with Liberace trying to control him as well as Liberace's obsession to publicly hide their romance at any cost.

By 1982, Thorson's increasing drug abuse and Liberace's interest in younger men, including dancer Cary James (Boyd Holbrook), creates a rift that ultimately destroys their relationship. When Liberace begins visiting pornographic peep shows and suggests that they each see other people, Thorson becomes upset. Thorson retains an attorney to seek his financial share of the property by suing Liberace for over $100,000,000 in palimony. As a result, Liberace ends their formal partnership and involves himself with his most recent, and much younger, "assistant". In 1984, Thorson's palimony lawsuit starts where he gives details about his five-year romance with the entertainer, while Liberace flatly denies any sexual relationship.

Not long thereafter, in December 1986, Thorson receives a phone call from Liberace telling him that he is very sick with what is later revealed to be AIDS and that he would like Thorson to visit him again. Thorson agrees and drives to Liberace's retreat house in Palm Springs, where he and Liberace have one last, emotional conversation. Liberace dies a few months later in February 1987. Thorson attends Liberace's funeral, in which he imagines seeing Liberace performing one last time with his traditional flamboyance, before being lifted to Heaven with a stage harness.

Cast

Production

Director Steven Soderbergh first spoke with Michael Douglas about the idea of doing a Liberace film during the production of Traffic (2000), but had trouble figuring out an angle for it that would differentiate it from a traditional biopic.[8] In the summer of 2008, Soderbergh contacted screenwriter Richard LaGravenese with the idea of adapting Scott Thorson's memoir, Behind the Candelabra: My Life with Liberace.[9] In September 2008, the project was officially announced with Matt Damon close to signing on to play Thorson and Douglas in talks to portray Liberace.[10]

The following year, Douglas officially signed on to play Liberace alongside Damon.[11] The film spent several years in development while Soderbergh had difficulty securing funding, with Hollywood studios saying it was "too gay".[12][13][14] During this time, Douglas and Damon remained adamant that they would appear in the film despite its lengthy development.[9] Ultimately, the film was picked up by HBO Films and shot on a budget of $23 million over thirty days in 2012.[2]

Car used in the production

While promoting the film, Soderbergh went on to explain that this will be his last directorial effort for the time being.[4][8] It is also the last film to feature a musical score by composer Marvin Hamlisch, who died on August 6, 2012.[15][16]

Reception

Critical response

The film received critical acclaim. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 95% based on reviews from 94 film critics with an average score of 8.2 out of 10. The consensus reads: "Affectionate without sacrificing honesty, Behind the Candelabra couples award-worthy performances from Michael Douglas and Matt Damon with some typically sharp direction from Steven Soderbergh."[17] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, gives the film a score of 82 based on 30 reviews.[18]

Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film 4/5 stars, saying "As a black comedy, and as a portrait of celebrity loneliness, Behind the Candelabra is very stylish and effective, and Damon and Douglas give supremely entertaining performances."[19]

Ratings

The film, shown for the first time on American television on May 26, 2013, was watched by 2.4 million US viewers. A further 1.1 million tuned in to watch the repeat immediately after, bringing viewership to 3.5 million in total.[20] When the film debuted on HBO, it achieved the highest ratings for a TV film since 2004.[21]

Accolades

At the 2013 Cannes Film Festival, Baby Boy (a dog that appeared in the film as one of Liberace's pet poodles) won the Palm Dog Award.[22] This is not an official part of the festival but takes place at the same time. Behind the Candelabra won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Movie or Miniseries and TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Miniseries, and Specials.[23] The film won eleven Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Miniseries or Movie and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for Douglas.

Year Category Nominated artist/work Result
2013 Primetime Emmy Awards
Outstanding Miniseries or Movie Jerry Weintraub, Gregory Jacobs, Susan Ekins, and Michael Polaire Won
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie Michael Douglas Won
Matt Damon Nominated
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie Scott Bakula Nominated
Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries, Movie, or Dramatic Special Steven Soderbergh Won
Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie, or Dramatic Special Richard LaGravenese Nominated
Creative Arts Emmy Awards
Outstanding Art Direction for a Miniseries or Movie Howard Cummings, Patrick M. Sullivan Jr., and Barbara Munch Won
Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries, Movie, or Special Carmen Cuba Won
Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie Steven Soderbergh (as Peter Andrews) Nominated
Outstanding Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie, or Special Ellen Mirojnick and Robert Q. Mathews Won
Outstanding Hairstyling for a Miniseries or Movie Marie Larkin, Yvette Stone, Kerrie Smith, and Kay Georgiou Won
Outstanding Make-up for a Miniseries or Movie (Non-Prosthetic) Kate Biscoe, Deborah Rutherford, Deborah La Mia Denaver, Christine Beveridge, and Todd Kleitsch Won
Outstanding Prosthetic Make-up for a Series, Miniseries, Movie, or Special Kate Biscoe, Hiroshi Yada, Jamie Kelman, Stephen Kelley, Christine Beveridge, Todd Kleitsch, and Christien Tinsley Won
Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries or Movie Steven Soderbergh (as Mary Ann Bernard) Won
Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or Movie Dennis Towns, Larry Blake, and Thomas Vicari Won
2014 Golden Globe Awards
Best Miniseries or Television Film Won
Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film Matt Damon Nominated
Michael Douglas Won
Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Rob Lowe Nominated
British Academy Film Awards[24]
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Matt Damon Nominated
Best Adapted Screenplay Richard LaGravenese Nominated
Best Production Design Nominated
Best Costume Design Nominated
Best Makeup and Hair Nominated
Satellite Awards
Best Miniseries or TV Film Nominated
Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Film Michael Douglas Won
Matt Damon Nominated
Irish Film & Television Awards[25][26]
International Actor Michael Douglas Nominated
GLAAD Media Awards
Outstanding TV Movie or Mini-Series Won

References

  1. ↑ "Behind the Candelabra (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 2013-05-17. Retrieved 2013-05-29.
  2. 1 2 "AP Interview: Soderbergh On Quitting Movies". Associated Press. NPR. May 20, 2013. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  3. ↑ http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/intl/?page=&country=00&id=_fBEHINDTHECANDELA01
  4. 1 2 "Behind the Candelabra; The Book, The Movie". EarlyWord. March 20, 2013.
  5. ↑ "2013 Official Selection". Cannes. 18 April 2013. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  6. ↑ Higgins, Charlotte (2013-05-21). "Behind the Candelabra is tipped for Cannes success – but can't win Oscar". Guardian. Retrieved 2013-05-25
  7. ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIajC6_XWj4
  8. 1 2 Azzopardi, Chris (May 16, 2013). "Behind the ‘Candelabra’". Out & About Nashville. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
  9. 1 2 Radish, Christina (May 26, 2013). "Richard LaGravenese Talks BEHIND THE CANDELABRA, Signing on to the Film, Input from Matt Damon and Michael Douglas & Working with Steven Soderbergh". Collider.com. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  10. ↑ Chen, David (September 11, 2008). "Soderbergh To Direct "Liberace" Biopic, Michael Douglas To Play Lead". /Film. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  11. ↑ Dominguez, Robert (September 16, 2009). "Michael Douglas signs on to play Liberace in new biopic - and playing his lover will be ...". NY Daily News. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  12. ↑ Jagernauth, Kevin (2013-01-05). "Steven Soderbergh Says 'Behind The Candelabra' Was Rejected By Hollywood Studios For Being "Too Gay"". Indiewire. Retrieved 2013-05-26
  13. ↑ "Cannes Film Festival: Behind the Candelabra and Omar". BBC. 2013-05-22. Retrieved 2013-05-26
  14. ↑ Frosch, Jon (2013-05-21). "Steven Soderbergh's 'Too-Gay' Liberace Movie Has Arrived at Cannes". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2013-05-26
  15. ↑ Jagernauth, Kevin (August 9, 2012). "Steven Soderbergh's 'Behind The Candelabra' Will Feature Marvin Hamlisch's Final Score". IndieWire. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  16. ↑ Lang, Brent (August 7, 2012). "Marvin Hamlisch, Composed 'The Way We Were,' Dies at 68". The Wrap. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  17. ↑ "Behind the Candelabra (2013)". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Behind the Candelabra – Metacritic". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  19. ↑ Bradshaw, Peter (2013-05-26). "Cannes 2013: Behind the Candelabra – first look review". Guardian. Retrieved 2013-05-27
  20. ↑ "Liberace film watched by 2.4 million in US". BBC. 2013-05-30. Retrieved 2013-05-31
  21. ↑ "Steven Soderbergh's 'Behind the Candelabra' Is the Highest Rated HBO Movie Since 2004". IndieWire. 28 May 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  22. ↑ "Cannes Palm Dog Award Goes to Liberace’s Blind Poodle". Variety. 26 May 2013. Retrieved 26 May 2013.
  23. ↑ De Moraes, Lisa (August 3, 2013). "FX's TCA Awards: AMC’s ‘Breaking Bad’ Wins Program Of The Year – Winners List (Live)". Deadline. Retrieved August 3, 2013.
  24. ↑ "Bafta Film Awards 2014: Full list of winners". BBC News. 17 February 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
  25. ↑ "THE 11TH ANNUAL IRISH FILM & TELEVISION AWARDS". IFTA.ie. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  26. ↑ "IFTA Announces Winners of the 11th Annual Irish Film & Television Awards". Irish Film and Television Network. April 5, 2014. Retrieved April 6, 2014.

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