Behind the Candelabra (2013) on Netflix
TV-MA20131h 58mBiographyDramaRomance
Scott Thorson, an 18-year-old animal trainer, meets Liberace through Bob Black, a Hollywood producer. The pianist makes him an assistant, then a lover, keeping the romance from the public.
- Netflix3.3/5
- IMDb7.0/1047,703 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes94%
Trailer
Plot summary
In 1977, Scott Thorson works as an animal trainer for films and lives with an adoptive family in Los Angeles. A night at a gay bar brings him together with Bob Black, a Hollywood producer, who takes him to see Liberace perform. The pianist invites them backstage, then to his home in Las Vegas. Thorson notices that one of Liberace's dogs has gone temporarily blind and, with his veterinary assistant background, offers to treat it. The cure earns him a place beside the pianist, first as an assistant, then as the driver of the Rolls-Royce that carries Liberace onto the stage. He moves in and becomes his lover. Liberace, a devout Catholic, tells him he once tried to love women, and begins reshaping his young companion, asking a plastic surgeon to make Thorson's face more like his own.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Behind the Candelabra (2013)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The film spent several years in development while Soderbergh had difficulty securing funding, with Hollywood studios saying it was "too gay". During that time Douglas and Damon remained adamant that they would appear in the film despite its lengthy development.
- For the piano playing performances, Michael Douglas's head was digitally composited onto the body of Philip Fortenberry, who had entertained audiences at the Liberace Museum and said the rings needed to be glued to his fingers because they kept flopping around and clicking on the keys.
- Scenes set in Las Vegas were filmed at Zsa Zsa Gabor's mansion in Bel Air and at Siegfried & Roy's mansion in Las Vegas; Liberace's West Hollywood penthouse had been converted into office space, so the building's owner convinced the current occupants to temporarily relocate during filming and the space was returned to his original design.
- Shown on American television for the first time on May 26, 2013, the film was watched by 2.4 million US viewers with a further 1.1 million tuning in for the immediate repeat, the highest ratings for a television film since 2004.
- The pianos used in the film were once owned by Liberace, and one of those used in the opening scenes had been purchased by Debbie Gibson at the 1988 estate sale.
