Love & Mercy

I have been a Beach Boys fan for some time but I am not familiar with the band itself as much as the Beatles. I liked the trailer for this movie but I am glad I looked up some info about the show before going to see it. I was therefore prepared for its unique style. It isn't your typical biographical film. We have seen other non-linear plotlines before in this genre like "The Social Network" but for "Love & Mercy", it resembles a documentary thanks to the cinematography and editing. The acting in this show is its best characteristic.

"Love & Mercy" starts out like you would expect it to: you have a montage of the Beach Boys' circa the 1960's. Because I am a sucker for rags-to-riches stories, part of me would have liked to see the origin of the band instead of just hearing about it. After the montage is over, we are non-verbally informed that this biographical movie will not be mainstream. What Brian writes on the back of Melinda's business card is a subconscious cry for help. This is where the movie begins its dark tone. I have seen darker films though. You feel genuine pity for Brian Wilson and the drugs/alcohol are depicted in a negative light. Favorite moments in the movie for me include the recording and use of "Wouldn't It Be Nice" as well as the origins of "Good Vibrations". I also like the restaurant scene where Brain and Melinda are on a double date. The use of mirrors and rack focus was cool. Some dramatic scenes include the Beach boys doing nothing while Brian tries to get the cellists to play their music just right. We get a nice 360-degree pan. Speaking of the cinematography, the scenes in the 1960's are shot documentary style and this creates realism. The movie was filmed in the actual studio that the Beach Boys used in that decade by the way. Even with the scenes where the Beach Boys aren't recording, there is something about the use of sound or camera angles that creates a sense of realism or at least a unique style. This was also true with the scenes that take place in the 80's. I confess that I never heard of the "Pet Sounds" album except for its first track. As distinctive as "Love & Mercy" is, the abstract ending was something I could do without. I felt it distracted from the resolution of the Landy subplot.

I am so amazed by all the performances in this show. John Cusack does things I haven't seen him do before and I accepted his performance as a result. The biggest compliment I can give is that I believed I was seeing the same character during two different decades. Paul Dano and Cusack were wonderful at accomplishing this. This is my favorite performance I have ever seen from Elizabeth Banks and maybe even from the great Paul Giamatti. I like this movie better than "Get on Up" because "Love & Mercy" has a clear villain in the form of Landy as performed by Giamatti. He has the best performance among all the cast members. He really surprised me even though I knew he was a heck of a dramatic actor already. A final shout out goes to Oscar-winning composer Atticus Ross. He was a great choice for a movie like this. I didn't even notice his musical score and sometimes, that is a good thing. If the music is less apparent, then it can even more affect the audience on a subconscious level.

Other biographical movies that have drug use such as "Ray" and "The Social Network" are more traditional and that is why I like them more. That is not to say however that "Love & Mercy" was a bad movie. It just had a very memorizing approach in its storytelling, so much so that I don't think I need to see it again. The movie has realism and powerful drama because of this style, acting and other elements.

3 Stars