Review of Love & Mercy (2015) by Lyn — 27 Nov 2015

I wondered what this movie could offer that I hadn't learned from documentaries about Brian Wilson -- his musical genius and his personal struggles. But I found it really interesting and moving. It might take a while to buy into the "two different actors who don't really look like him" approach -- even with two excellent actors.

But they're great at portraying BW's vulnerability, especially Paul Dano. And hearing all that Beach Boys music is a treat. The usually avuncular Paul Giamatti is so subtly evil I could hardly stand to watch him! I felt that the other Beach Boys could have been sketched in better as characters.

And at times I wanted more details about Brian's family and concerns in addition to music.