Review of Love & Mercy (2015) by Prentice S — 19 Sep 2015

Two thousand fifteen is proving to be a solid year for musician biopics and documentaries, what with "Amy," "Montage of Heck," "Straight Outta Compton," and the upcoming "I Saw the Light.

" But, "Love & Mercy," to date, is my favorite one this year. Starring John Cusack and Paul Dano both as Brian Wilson, in different stages of his life, "Love & Mercy" shows how someone as creative, imaginative, and successful as founding Beach Boy Brian Wilson can fall from the top of the pops to the bottom of the abyss.

Paul Dano shows the cheerful, younger side of Wilson, back when the Beach Boys were crafting some of the best pop music known to man- his transformation for the role involve weight gains and singing lessons with the man itself, so it goes to show how deserving he is for some attention from the Academy.

He shows Wilson soaring high, but finds him collapsing into himself just a few short years after his fame: and Dano captures this perfectly. Cusack plays a more subdued Wilson, after he's regained some composure, but after he's fallen under the spell of Eugene Landy (played by Giamatti).

The tragic rise and fall and rise again of Brian Wilson is played out beautifully, soundtracked to some of the best music ever made, and it shows so much humanity in such a brief window. Easily one of the best films of 2015.