Love & Mercy (2014)

	Directed by: Bill Pohlad	COUNTRY USA GENRE Biographical drama / Music NORWEGIAN TITLE Love & Mercy RUNNING TIME 121 minutes
	Produced by: Bill Pohlad Claire Rudnick Polstein John Wells
	Written by: Oren Moverman Michael Alan Lerner

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Brian – Future	John Cusack	½
Brian – Past	Paul Dano	½
Melinda Ledbetter	Elizabeth Banks	½
Dr. Eugene Landy	Paul Giamatti	½
Mike Love	Jake Abel
Dennis Wilson	Kenny Wormald	-
Carl Wilson	Brett Davern	-
Al Jardine	Graham Rogers	-
Marilyn Wilson	Erin Darke	-
Murry Wilson	Bill Camp	½
Bruce Johnston	Nick Gehlfuss	-
Chuck Britz	Mark Linett	-

Review

The story of the late The Beach Boys maestro Brian Wilson is told with something close to gusto and captivation by filmmaker Bill Pohlad. At its best, Love & Mercy treats Wilson's and The Beach Boys' lore with reverence and a delightful attention to detail, such as in the segments from the studio, particularly during the recording of "Pet Sounds". At its least inspired, the film feels like a fairly superficial and sensationalistic look at romance in the wake of mental illness. John Cusack, who plays the somewhat older Wilson in these segments, is a peculiar casting choice, his lack of resemblance to Mr. Wilson taken into account, but he nevertheless gives a wholehearted – if somewhat unsophisticated – performance. And although his scenes with Elizabeth Banks, as Wilson's future wife Melinda Ledbetter, feel naïve, they are also imbued with a tenderness and acceptance that make them hit home. Regarding all the drama and inner strife between the band members over the years, Love & Mercy merely scratches the surface. When it occasionally finds real depth, it is through Paul Dano's brilliant performance as Wilson's younger self. There is an emotionally laden moment when Wilson plays a crude version of "God Only Knows" to his father Murry (Bill Camp). Despite the fact that the scene has a slight Hollywoodish 'dad-doesn't-understand-me' stamp, Dano's interpretation of Brian's emotional dilemma here and in related segments is pure, high-quality thespianism.