FINDING FORRESTER. (2000) REVIEW BY SANDRA HARRIS.

Behind The Candelabra DVD Review

Rating:
15
BD/DVD Release Date:
14th October 2013 (UK)
Distributor:
eOne
Director:
Steven Soderbergh
Cast:
Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Dan Akroyd, Scott Bakula, Rob Lowe,Debbie Reynolds
Buy Behind The Candelabra: DVD or Blu-ray
For his last big screen outing, Steven Soderbergh delivers us something totally unexpected. A gloriously camp, hedonistic biopic of one of the world’s most famous performers, Liberace (Michael Douglas). The man who sued the Daily Mirror for libel and won. Columnist William Connor had called him

‘…the summit of sex - the pinnacle of masculine, feminine and neuter. Everything that he, she and it could ever want… a deadly, winking, sniggering, snuggling, chromium-plated, scent-impregnated, luminous, quivering, giggling, fruit-flavoured, mincing, ice-covered heap of mother love’. Well, quite.

Soderbergh charts the homosexuality, excesses and superficial splendour that punctuated Liberace’s life and loves. Based on the memoir of jilted lover Scott Thorson (here played by a spectacularly buff Matt Damon), Behind the Candelabra is actually an insightful tale into the love story between Thorson and Liberace. Thorson goes from being young, starstruck and seduced, to live in lover to yesterday’s news as he is eventually replaced by a younger model. Their journey is both touching and witty as it navigates the pitfalls of love in the shadow of stardom and the hunger for youth and beauty.

Though Damon is excellent as always it is Douglas who steals show, giving an unselfconscious performance that treads the line perfectly between camp, kitsch and charming. Evoking sympathy for his character is no mean feat and Douglas is clearly loving being back in front of the camera. There’s also a deliciously sleazy cameo from Rob Lowe as a lizard featured plastic surgeon who attempts to create Thorson in Liberace’s image.

It really is damning to the film industry that such a well written script with Soderbergh, Damon and Douglas attached could not attract the backing of a major studio and was left to HBO to pick up - denying it eligibility for the Academy Awards. Douglas though, did walk away with a much deserved Emmy.

★★★★☆

Vikki Myerscough

Radioman Review

Radioman is a legendary figure in the New York City film world. He is a former alcoholic homeless bum who started his film career in 1990 on Brian De Palmas’ Bonfire of the Vanities. He simply walked onto to set and handed Bruce Willis a beer because he though he was a bum as well. His life story has been told in the recent documentary directed by Mary Herr also called Radioman.

It’s features interview snippets of such stars as George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Josh Brolin, Tom Hanks, Johnny Deep and the list goes on and on. They all say how much they like seeing Radioman on set and how they it’s the same if it’s a New York film and he isn’t on set. Robin Williams one of the first celebrities who he met on a film set (the film is question was Terry Gilliam’s The Fisher King) jokes his resume is larger than his, Radioman’s IMDb page doesn’t list a 10th of the films he has appeared in.

It’s an interesting look at somebody who clearly has some mental health issues but has such a deep love for films. It shows his daily routine, which is getting on his bike and cycling to the daily film set and sometimes he evens go to other states besides New York.  It’s show shis mess of a apartment. It also mentions his desire to get more prominent roles, which he been getting. He has a noticeable role on Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island for example.

It doesn’t really just judgement on Radioman. However it’s at times very difficult to watch because some of his behaviour and the footage is so revealing it gets very difficult at times to watch. Overall it’s a good little doc about the other side of the film industry.

Ian Schultz

★★★1/2☆

Rating:12
UK Release Date: 12th October 2012
Directed by:  Mary Kerr
Cast: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Johnny Depp, Meryl Streep