Love & Mercy: Movie Review

The review below is a mini-review which was part of my 2015 SXSW recap from last month. You can read the full recap here.

Known for producing such films as “12 Years a Slave” and “Wild”, Bill Pohlad steps back in the director’s chair after 25 years to helm the Brian Wilson biopic “Love & Mercy”. For those of you not familiar with Wilson, he is not only a member of The Beach Boys but also the one who wrote their songs. Screenwriters Oren Moverman and Michael Alan Lerner take us back and forth through Wilson’s early days (played by Paul Dano) and forward into the 80s (played by John Cusack) where his talent and success have cost him his sanity.

The decision not to go chronologically and stick with the back and forth was a wise one and works wonderfully, showing how Wilson’s past has affected him years later. This also happens to be Cusack’s best work in years. Elizabeth Banks portrays Melinda Ledbetter, a car saleswoman who developed a relationship with Wilson and ultimately helped rescue him from Dr. Eugene Landy (Paul Giamatti), who had his own agenda for the music star. If you are like me and enjoy good music biopics, then “Love & Mercy” is for you.

By: Marc Ferman