Fully fleshed out biopic and character study

Rating: 7/10 (21 August 2013)

If this is indeed Steven Soderbergh's last film (as he's gone on record saying) then that'll just be a darn shame because he's one of the few working directors that can turn out films of this standard at a rate of twice a year.
Behind the Candelabra focuses on the life of Liberace (Michael Douglas) for the six years that he spent with his lover Scott Thurston played by Matt Damon. With the exception of the scenes of Liberace performing in Vegas the film isn't too showy and instead uses extended bouts of dialogue and relationship troubles between the characters to propel the film. This works to a degree as Douglas is doing some fantastic work here and the way Matt Damon evolves throughout the film is a testament to how good of an actor he really is. That being said there are moments where the film sags and its episodic nature grows a tad grating throughout the run time.
I can see why the film had to be this long however as it aims to track how the relationship grew out of one based on power and control on the part of Liberace and began to fester after years of this dynamic, but surely there could have been a scene of drug taking or plastic surgery that could have been cut.
As someone who wasn't at all familiar with the story of Liberace I found this film to entertain and enlighten on the subject of the Las Vegas entertainment industry and the closeted homosexuality of public figures during this time. So if you're in the mood for a slow burn character study of some larger than life figures while also witnessing the swansong of Soderbergh (for the time being) check it out.
I still don't know what a candelabra is.