Well made, moving dramatisation of a very famous man

Rating: 9/10 (13 July 2013)

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning
Scott Thorsen (Matt Damon) was a young, naive farm boy who worked on movie sets, before he was introduced one night to entertainment giant Liberace (Michael Douglas) after a show, and became his lover, spending the late 70's and early 80's in his life before he was tumultuously thrown out, only to get his own back with a tell all book about their time together, before a brief reconciliation before Liberace's death in 1987.
Steven Soderbergh's latest high profile biopic, which essentially serves as a temporary resurrection of a man who was once as big as Elvis or Sinatra, has managed to prove controversial for any number of reasons, not least of which was the casting of Matt Damon as a young man of eighteen, despite being 42 years of age himself. The first high point the movie strikes is pulling off the incredible feat of genuinely managing to make Damon look this age, a real masterstroke from the make up/lighting department. All the same, in a still largely conservative America, the film was deemed "too gay" for mainstream cinema goers, despite it's massive Oscar potential, and only managed to make it as a HBO TV movie, and doesn't manage to hide it's production values quite so convincingly. Some of the greatest sadness's are caused by a nonsense, since it's ridiculous to think most Americans wouldn't be forward thinking enough to enjoy this lavish, touching and highly impressive true life story.
In the main roles, Douglas and Damon very bravely cast aside their tough guy personas to portray the original Elton John and David Furnish, only in a day and age where this kind of relationship had to be kept completely behind the scenes rather than plastered all over the front page of OK! Magazine, and it's testament that they manage to play them so well. As Liberace, Douglas captures the gay mannerisms and styles perfectly, showcasing a flamboyant character it seems inconceivable anyone could doubt was gay nowadays. He evokes a gentle innocence and dislike of confrontation, juxtaposed with a thin line between whether he has genuine love for Scott or a filthy, perverted lust. Meanwhile, Damon is explosive as the emotionally volatile, needy, unworldly wise Scott, who is never completely able to lose his affection for Liberace despite the worst treatment. Like a dog, the worse he's treated, the more he loves, though with this in mind it still doesn't take away from a deeply tender and heart-breaking ending.
This isn't the type of movie I'd go out my way to see, but with nothing else on and being quite a fan of the lead star, I gave it a go and think I spent my time well. If the lead stars don't provide enough dramatic dynamism for you, there's still a lively supporting cast including Rob Lowe, Dan Ackroyd and Scott Bakula to ensure the characters working in the background for the main characters also get their less pivotal, but still highly relevant, inclusion. ****