Review Detail
9.6 6 10
Overall rating
9.2
Audio/Video Quality
10.0
Audio Editing
10.0
Visual Editing
9.0
Narrative
8.0
Enjoyment
9.0
TM2YC's "Love and Mercy" edit is the way this movie should be seen. Without the bloat of the less successful Cusack scenes weighing it down, it's now a tighter, more focused story about an artist's journey.
It starts off with a bang: Putting that Phil Spector scene up top was a stroke of brilliance, as it sets up Brian's motivation for the rest of the movie.
However, I would've liked to have seen a little more mercilessness with the editing knife -- restoring scenes from the cutting room floor sometimes causes a few redundant moments. And the ending montage, while expertly cut, could've ended a few shots earlier.
But those are tinsy nitpicky things. By removing the "older Brian" section, the movie is no longer a so-so -- if more marketable -- "love conquers all" story. This is now a leaner story about Brian's opus. To borrow a Beach Boys analogy, TM2YC has turned Smiley Smile back into SMiLE.
It starts off with a bang: Putting that Phil Spector scene up top was a stroke of brilliance, as it sets up Brian's motivation for the rest of the movie.
However, I would've liked to have seen a little more mercilessness with the editing knife -- restoring scenes from the cutting room floor sometimes causes a few redundant moments. And the ending montage, while expertly cut, could've ended a few shots earlier.
But those are tinsy nitpicky things. By removing the "older Brian" section, the movie is no longer a so-so -- if more marketable -- "love conquers all" story. This is now a leaner story about Brian's opus. To borrow a Beach Boys analogy, TM2YC has turned Smiley Smile back into SMiLE.
User Review
Do you recommend this edit?
Yes
Format Watched?
Digital
D