Brian Wilson was a famously gifted songwriter with a jealous, overbearing father who struggled with greedy hangers on and his own intense mental illness for decades, releasing a few seminal, familiar albums in the process. In other words, awards movie gold! Bill Pohlad directed Love and Mercy from a script by Oren Moverman and Michael Alan Lerner with Paul Dano starring as the young Brian Wilson and John Cusack as the older. They look nothing alike, but maybe the movie is trying to say doing lots of drugs will change a person.
Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions acquired Love And Mercy for $3 million at Toronto last year and have set it for a June 5th release. Let’s just hope the dialogue in this was written specifically as signposts for the trailer and not as things people actually say in the movie. A sampling:
“I’m going to make the greatest album ever made.”
“You can’t just do whatever you want, Brian!”
“I got different stuff inside me and I’ve gotta get it out!”
“Sing what’s in your soul.”
“You need to find a way to get back to yourself.”
That said, the reviews have been pretty good, and at the very least, the Moneyball guy didn’t direct it. Also, they got permission to use the songs, so we don’t have to see a movie where the Meat Boys sing “Wouldn’t It Be Swell” and “California Girth.” Help me, Rodney yeah, get her out of my carrrr…