Review of Love and Mercy

I saw this film at Cinemapolis in Ithaca, NY. I was checking around for a movie to see and this one caught my attention after a conversation I was having with a friend I work with. I didn't know anything about the Beach Boys or Bryan Wilson, but after the film I knew a lot about his struggle. And I started to detect a trend in the 80s. It seems like there were a lot of people in rehab or psychiatric counseling during the 80s. I suppose it stems from the 70s where so many people became addicted to drugs or alcohol and wanted to find a better situation.

The actor who played the younger Brian Wilson was very good. So was the psychiatric counselor of Wilson's during the 80s. He really came off as a tyrant. One of the best parts of the film was seeing how the music was made. I really enjoyed all those studio sessions where the musical gifts of Wilson shined. He truly is a musical genius however overused or cliche that sounds.

It was also entertaining to see Wilson succomb to mental illness. I have always wondered about the relationship between creativity and awkwardness or uniqueness. There are so many examples of people who are incredibly creative yet are so self conscious that it brings them down. Or they are just a bit different from normality. I guess this film has the background of the 50s and 60s behind it, so the age of the organization man sticks out. Wilson definitely was not an organization man. Yet so many people from the film were proponents of conformity or normalcy. His father stands out, perhaps the most, as a very strict, unhappy person. And the crazy counselor does to. Clearly though Wilson had problems that needed to be addressed and I was happy to find out by the end that he got the treatment he needed to get healthy.

The film centers on two periods in Wilson's life. First is the time when he was in the Beach Boys and producing music to great success. The second period is about his struggles in the 80s with addiction and mental illness. Both are presented in appealing period settings. The haircuts, the clothing all reflect the trend of the times.

In the end it's Elizabeth Banks who saves the day. She brings Wilson's family to awareness about the abusive psychologist and frees him from his control. Banks comes of as very nice and extremely attractive. I laughed to myself at those period sweaters she was wearing. So 80s. It was nice to find out the Wilson marries his hero and has a family with her.

Good film.