Brian Sounds

Rating: 8/10 (19 June 2015)

The subjectiveness of all mediums of human analysis could easily cause a film like Love & Mercy to become not only preachy, but also downright tricky. Lucky for us, director Bill Pohlad's sophomore picture avoids those consequences and excels in sharing Brian Willson's astonishing story.
The movie takes place during two key time periods in Wilson's life: the "Pet Sounds" era and the pre-"SMiLE" era. Little Miss Sunshine's Paul Dano subtly plays the earlier period (in which Wilson begins hearing the voices of his father); and John Cusack boldly portrays the latter (in which Wilson conquers his demons, both real and imaginary). All the supporting cast's performances are great, but the beauty lies with Dano and Cusack. The two of them — who apparently were not allowed to meet during filming — captured the inversely changing emotional states of Wilson borderline perfectly.
However, there is fault in the film, and it lies mostly within the "Pet Sounds" scenes. The story's structure, along with Wilson's mind, becomes fragmented as time goes on, but it causes the audience to get bored, as it becomes hard to connect to the protagonist. The "SMiLE" story is beyond intriguing, so when the focus switches to the past, an unavoidable feeling of disappointment builds in the crowd.
Other than that, there is not much to complain about. Oscar nominated DP Robert Yeoman beautifully illustrates the psychosomatic issues of Brian Wilson (especially during the studio scenes) and Atticus Ross' Beatles-inspired soundtrack fits perfectly with the Sound Department's patronizing mixing.
Love & Mercy is an overall success.