by Mike Favila, Editor
As a long time Beach Boys fan and Brian Wilson acolyte, I’ve devoured everything about the band for years. Though long overdue, it is amazing that the mainstream has come around to Wilson’s genius. The last two decades have seen a resurgence in appreciation for the subtle musical movements contained in each little mini opera. While casual rock fans were quick to dismiss the ‘surf & car’ songs that they are most popular for, true listeners were rewarded with a complete musical world to explore. Love & Mercy is a tribute to this distinctly American genius.
It’s obvious, even from the opening notes in the credits, that director Bill Pohlad treats his subject like a true love. Even the shots of the boys in the studio look like the photos from the early 60s, where they are standing in a semicircle around one condenser mic. Although Pohlad is a veteran producer, Love & Mercy is only his second film as a director, with his last film released in 1990.
Using two different actors to portray the same character seems like a radical move, but it works here. There’s an immense chasm between the young boy genius that composed those early classics with The Wrecking Crew and the fragile, world weary survivor that Wilson later became. It’s hard to believe that both sides are the same person, but Love & Mercy portray the gap wonderfully with this device.
Everybody appreciates the earlier output of the Beach Boys and Wilson, but I was surprised to find myself drawn to Cusack’s portrayal of older Brian. As a musician, it’s thrilling to see the reenactment of those classic songs being built, piece by piece, in the studio. But his interactions with future wife Melinda (Elizabeth Banks) really draw you in. The crux of Love & Mercy is built on their relationship, and eventual growth into the productive musician he’s become again.
All the other players bring their A game as well. Paul Giamatti is terrifying as Eugene Landy, Brian’s true life antagonist. Landy is Brian’s psychiatrist who becomes his legal guardian and takes control of his life and finances. He forbids Brian from seeing his brothers or daughters and controls access to everybody in Brian’s life. Jake Abel plays Mike Love, Brian’s frequent collaborator in the Beach Boys. He plays the singer with complexity, and goes back and forth between bully and close family.
Atticus Ross (The Social Network, Gone Girl) isn’t usually a name you’d associate with a Brian Wilson biopic, but here he approaches the music with inventive and unexpected touches. A frequent Trent Reznor collaborator, his score is moody and but manages to weave in the voices and harmonies from the Beach Boys master tapes almost as a sound collage. I wasn’t too surprised when I’d read that he took inspiration from The Grey Album in writing the soundscapes.
I was expecting an interesting (if not detached) viewing when watching Love & Mercy, but the movie was a truly inspired watch. I’d been let down by the other films about the Beach Boys, so I wasn’t really expecting much, aside from a few live performances of the band and conflict between Love and Wilson. But the narrative here is more personal than a simple fan’s view. Even if you weren’t intimately familiar with Brian Wilson’s biography, the trials that he’s gone through are enough to make you connect with him, if you didn’t before.
There’s always debate about whether the pressure from external people make artists great, or whether they flourish in spite of them. Were the early surf songs a product of the abuse from father Murray and cousin Mike? How many songs could have come out of Brian if he’d escaped Landy a decade sooner? Love & Mercy shows both sides, even within the same man. This film is one of the best biopics to come out in decades. If you didn’t get a chance to see Love & Mercy in theatres, correct your mistake immediately.
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ComicsOnline gives Love & Mercy 5 out of 5 pocket symphonies!
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