Mr Showmanship ... and Scott

Rating: 6/10 (31 May 2013)

Greetings again from the darkness. According to director Steven Soderbergh, this is his farewell to film. He is taking his eye and camera and will concentrate on specialty projects ... at least until he figures out that movie directors make more money (yes, I'm skeptical). This one has been "in the works" for years and is based on Scott Thorson's autobiography.
If you don't recognize the name Scott Thorson, you surely recognize his opponent in his 1982 palimony suit ... Liberace. The story recounts how a 17 year old Scott fell under the spell of Mr Showmanship, and didn't leave until 1982. To understand what occurred during those years requires an understanding of the times. The gay culture had not worked its way into mainstream America. Despite his over-the-top flamboyance (on and off stage), Liberace's fans refused to believe he was gay ... or more accurately, refused to even entertain the idea.
Although their actual ages are way out of whack for the story, Matt Damon and Michael Douglas are both exceptional as Scott and Liberace, respectively. Much of this story focuses on Scott, but Douglas' performance is what makes this work. He walks the fine line between predator and protector, lover and louse. When he tells a young Scott that he wants to be his "Brother, Father, Lover, Friend", we are nauseated as viewers, while Scott is captivated.
Supporting work comes from Dan Akyroyd as Seymour Heller, Liberace's fixer and handler; an exceptional Rob Lowe as plastic surgeon Dr. Startz; Scott Bakula as one of Scott's first and the one who introduces him to LL; Paul Reiser; Nicky Katt; and Debbie Reynolds ... yes THAT Debbie Reynolds ... who plays Liberace's controlling and creepy mother.
Scott Thorson is really not a very interesting character, though there is no doubt that he and Liberace were exceptionally close for almost six years. The movies have shown us many "kept" women over the years, so it's a twist to see a studly young man in the role. The slow spiral into drug addiction and paranoia is not fun to watch, and luckily the movie ends with Liberace's passing due to complications from AIDS. Since then, Mr. Thorson testified against gangster Eddie Nash in the Wonderland murders, and was placed in the Federal Witness Protection program. Of course, his taste of fame would not allow him to live a quiet life and he has since been shot and arrested ... even giving interviews from the Reno jail just one month before the premiere of this movie.
Definitely worth watching thanks to the Michael Douglas performance, but also as a reminder of just how much innocence society has lost in the last thirty years. Soderbergh says that no studio would distribute the film because it was "too gay". Maybe we haven't progressed so much after all. Luckily HBO picked it up, though that prevents Douglas from being an Oscar contender. Brace yourself for the "creep factor". Liberace even tried to legally adopt Scott ... a move that eclipses the wildness of even his costumes, pianos and cars.