Love and mercy movie review movie#
Love and mercy movie review tv#

Director Bill Pohlad, known as producer of “12 Years a Slave”, “Into the Wild” and “Brokeback Mountain”, did a great job recreating the ‘60s and ‘80s atmosphere and Brian’s delirious state before meeting Melida. “Love and Mercy” was written by Brian Wilson as the opening track to his 1988 debut solo album “Brian Wilson”.

Love and mercy movie review movie#

It seems that the name of the movie is inspired by a song. The movie also depicts the extravaganza of the successful ‘60s bands: Brian’s piano is situated in a sand box, in the middle of the living room, where he plays barefoot or the middle room gloomy tent intended for smoking pot. Sounds of all kinds merge into Brian’s mind creating masterpieces: “God Only Knows” (called by Paul McCartney “the greatest song ever written”), “Good Vibrations” ( “the pocket symphony”) or “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”. Secondly, I loved the scenes revealing the creative process. On the other hand, Jake Abel and Graham Rogers did impressive roles by looking and acting like Mike Love and Al Jardine. Paul Dano doesn’t look exactly like the teen Brian, but he had obviously studied every gesture and mimics to compensate the appearance.

Love and mercy movie review tv#

The famous first videos of the band (wearing the emblematic striped shirts, carrying the iconic surf board on the beach, recording in the studio – all around that one microphone, singing live on TV with the energetic go-go dancers behind) were perfectly reproduced by the talented young actors. I enjoyed all the ‘60s scenes, recreating the first episodes of stardom of the Beach Boys. When he meets Melinda Ledbetter in the ‘80s, he hopes love will save him. But that didn’t diminish his creativity and musical genius. Amazingly, Brian Wilson has been deaf in one ear since he was a small child, resulting from his father’s violent outbursts. Despite his musical brilliance, he is torn apart by the abuse of his father, the disapproval of his dandy colleague Mike Love and his own obsessions and fears. And so it was Brian’s phrenetic existence till then, as the movie reveals.

Lapidary dialogue scenes and expanded musical parts alternate abruptly. Pieces of Brian Wilson’s life are flying back and forth, in a frantic sequence of events.