Haunting Storytelling and Brilliant Performances

Rating: 9/10 (30 May 2013)

From the moment I heard that this movie was being made by Steven Soderbergh with Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Rob Lowe, Dan Akroyd and Debbie Reynolds, who actually knew Liberace – I was hooked. I just knew I would enjoy this film, so I write this with a certain amount of bias. I find all of Soderbergh's films insightfully enduring and Richard LaGravenese's truthful writing refreshing.
I'd always been fascinated by the flamboyant, glittery Liberace since childhood. As a young adult, I guessed that he was probably gay, though none of the media talked openly about it. It was clear that most people thought he was gay – but no one cared particularly due to his popularity. Besides, back then, you just didn't talk about such things.
The film centers around the love affair between Liberace and Scott Thorson, based upon his book about their torrid and troubled relationship. I hadn't read the book so I found that the story behind their relationship turned out to be much more unnerving than many I've seen. I used to think that I couldn't be more creeped out than I used to be by the babes I knew in California who would get boob jobs and other bodily reconstructions to suit their men, but this one takes the cake. Since I already indicated there are spoilers, I will go ahead and say that I can find little more twisted than a grown man who insists that his lover have his face reconstructed to make it look like his own. I suppose it made sense that perhaps the reason he did that was because he intended to adopt the 17 year old young man, making it beyond disturbing, bordering on pedophilia and molestation by a father figure. Yikes!
Matt Damon has said that because Soderbergh is so precise, it was much easier to do the gay for pay (my words) scenes. Thank goodness for small favors. Nonetheless, these two actors fearlessly go for an authentic look into an ill-fated romance that went south for more than a few reasons. Thorson has maintained that he was bisexual, found gay porn a turn-off and was disenchanted by Liberace's propensity toward promiscuity. One scene that makes Liberace look particularly hypocritical is when he tells his lover that they should see other people to satisfy their individual sexual desires, but then accuses Scott of having an affair.
Even more troubling is when Thorson revealed that all of the unnecessary facial surgeries, done to satisfy his obsessive lover, created an addiction to various drugs such as cocaine, biphetamines, Demerol and quaaludes, all of which were allegedly provided by the plastic surgeon.
The level of detail in this film is mesmerizing, from the elaborate costumes to the over the top décor that Liberace incorporated into his entire lifestyle. Surely, the costume designers deserve an award for their work on this film, as do the entire cast, crew and director. It's actually one of the best biopics I've ever seen. It really felt like I was entering the world of this man at a time in his life when he had gone far beyond his pinnacle, but remained very popular. Soderbergh's shots from head to toe accentuating the shimmering lifestyle that Liberace led are haunting against the backdrop of living inside of the closet for most all of his life.
Given Thorson's continued troubled life, it would be interesting to see an epilogue to this film. Exploring the affects of how a 17 year old boy's sexual relationship with a very famous and obsessive man, old enough to be his father affected him could be seen as a cautionary tale – at the very least. It is said that Thorson is working on the second part of his story to raise money for a legal defense fund. As he sits in jail, penniless - it looks look a movie advance on a book doesn't go far these days.