Malibu -- but of course

Beachfront. Big-name architect. Beautiful. What else do you need to know?

This is a house that could play itself in the movies -- cast as the quintessential Malibu beach mansion.

Malibu architect Edward R. Niles, known for designing homes with sleek lines, spent five years expanding the original house to incorporate an adjacent lot acquired in 1995. The result is a contemporary home that knows better than to compete with Mother Nature.

The property fronts 128 feet of prime Malibu Road beach. Niles’ sophisticated design blends with warm interior features, including Brazilian cherry mitered walls and cabinetry, travertine floors, soaring ceilings and lots of glass to let in the natural light and provide sweeping coastline views.

The three-story, elevator-equipped beach home has stainless-steel fireplaces and tucked-away built-ins throughout -- such as a drawer for the pool cues and retractable wooden doggie gates. The outdoor decks run the length of the house, providing multilevel areas large and small for entertaining.

Asking price: $23.5 million

Size: There are five bedrooms and 5 1/2 baths in about 6,500 square feet.

Features: A sensational master-bedroom suite with closets that even Imelda Marcos would envy. The spa-inspired bath suite includes a steam shower and sauna. Hanging circular mirrors suspended over the sinks create the illusion of portholes and, aided by the pounding surf, fuel the sense that you are on an ocean yacht.

There’s also a 40-foot outdoor lap pool, a full gym and a full walk-in pantry with a Sub-Zero refrigerated wine cabinet.

Where: Malibu

Listing agent: Co-listed by Kimberly Pfeiffer, (310) 383-3664, and Chris Cortazzo, (310) 589-2472, both of Coldwell Banker.

To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, please send interior and exterior photos on a CD with caption information and a brief description of the house, including what makes the property unusual, to Ruth Ryon, Real Estate Section, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012; or e-mail [email protected].