Love and Mercy

[Greg]

It's the fall and rise of Brian Wilson story. It's done in two intertwined parts with two different actors playing the roll of Brian Wilson. 

First there is the young Brian Wilson played by Paul Dano at the time of recording Pet Sounds and Smile. Basically Wilson leaves the road to work in the studio so he can get the sounds in his head onto tape. Beautiful Mind scenarios ensue. My main take away from this part of the Beach Boy story is that Mike Love was a dick.

In the second part, we see Brian wilson in the grips of the voices of his head under the brutal psychiatric enslavement of Paul Giammatti. Does Giammatti go to the head of the line for slimy characters. But in comes Cadillac Salesperson, Elizabeth Banks to save him.

It was all very depressing. There wasn't a lot entertainment of seeing someone mentally unbalanced and then being taken advantage of. Since I lived in Los Angeles during the time when Wilson was under the thumb of Levy, I knew a lot of that part of the story.

There wasn't a lot of new information if you know the Wilson story. Cusack plays a modified version of Cusack. Dano does a good job as the early Brian. 

All told, I think you can skip this one.

And I am sure there is another review of this movie here. I just can't find it.

[Drunk Monk]

Giamatti playing an evil psych doc named Gene? Oh yeah, I am honored. Nice to see Banks is a serious role. I liked Dano and it kept bothering me why he was so familiar (turned out it could be any number of his past films I've seen but he didn't really stick out until now). I always like Cusack, ever since Grosse Point Blank. And I didn't really know that much about this story as I've never been that much of a beach boys fan. I was engaged throughout but it didn't move me significantly. I might have enjoyed a documentary more. Oh, but then there was Giamatti as Gene, and that kept me quite amused. 

If they were to make DM, the motion picture, it'd be a toss up who'd be the better titular lead: Giamatti , Cusack or Banks.