Teaser // Brian Wilson: LOVE & MERCY (2014)

Summary

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Jokermen Podcast – Teaser // Brian Wilson: LOVE & MERCY (2014)

Date: March 30, 2026
Hosts: Evan & Co-host 1

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Episode Overview

In this teaser episode of Jokermen, Evan and his co-host dive into the 2014 film Love and Mercy, a biopic chronicling the life of Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. The discussion focuses on Love and Mercy in the broader context of music biopics, exploring the film's unique position, the director’s background, and why the story of Brian Wilson translates particularly well to the big screen. The episode also touches on the inherent qualities and limitations of biographical films about musicians.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

Music Biopics: Love and Mercy’s Place ([01:10]–[02:04])

• Evan wonders aloud how Love and Mercy compares to other “big” music biopics, musing on their similarities and differences:

  “Is this better? Do we like it better? How do we feel with this film compared to the other big music biopic of recent times?” ([01:13])

• Co-hosts agree there is a broader conversation to be had about biopics and their stylistic sameness.

  “It might say something about music biopic movies, though, as a…” ([01:57])

Director Bill Pohlad — Unexpected Auteur ([02:07]–[04:39])

• The hosts introduce Bill Pohlad, director of Love and Mercy, whose background is primarily in film production rather than directing.
• They rattle off Pohlad's eclectic resume, including credits on Brokeback Mountain, The Tree of Life, 12 Years a Slave, and work with Terrence Malick and Robert Altman.

  Evan: “Executive producer. A Prairie Home Companion. The… The movie.” ([03:39])
  Co-host: “Oh, he's... He's involved with that fucking David Byrne, whatever thing.” ([03:56])

• The hosts note how Love and Mercy marked Pohlad's return to directing after 24 years, making it something of a passion project.

Technical Crew and Vision ([04:39]–[06:12])

• Robert Yeoman, famed cinematographer for Wes Anderson, was onboard, initially eyed as a possible director but encouraged Pohlad to carry through himself due to his clear vision.
• They reflect on Yeoman’s extensive Anderson credits, highlighting the talent assembled behind the film.

The Challenge of Bringing Brian Wilson to Film ([06:12]–[08:15])

• The hosts contextualize Love and Mercy alongside prior Beach Boys dramatizations, especially the “laugh-out-loud, funny at moments” TV biopic The Beach Boys: An American Family ([05:30]).

• Love and Mercy stands out as the most substantial and polished dramatic treatment.

• On whether telling Wilson's story is a good idea:

  Evan: “Good idea, I think. Okay, I'll just say I think that this is a better idea than doing a movie about Bob Dylan in this similar fashion.” ([06:50])

The Inherent Corniness of Music Biopics ([07:07]–[08:15])

• Co-hosts unpack why certain subjects are more suited to the music biopic’s “corn” and “schmaltz;” Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys, with their lush sounds and emotional highs and lows, fit this mold better than, say, Bob Dylan.

  Co-host 1: “Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys are just more conducive to the cheese, to the corn, to the schmaltz. It’s just part of the Beach Boys in a way, to me, at least, that it is not part of Bob Dylan.” ([07:38])

The Biopic Dilemma: Cinema Trying to Capture Music ([08:15]–[End])

• The hosts discuss the fundamental problem biopics face: conveying musical genius through film, often coming up short or relying on cliché.

  Evan: “It's a medium that is not another medium trying to communicate what's great about the other medium, which just seems... uniquely doomed.” ([08:15])

• They note it’s easier for music to evoke cinema (soundtracks) than for film to explain the magic of music.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Biopic Aptness:

  “That cheese and that corn and that schmaltz belongs in Beach Boys world… and it’s just not something I associate with Bob at all.” – Co-host 1 ([07:44])

• On Biopics’ Challenges:

  “It’s uniquely doomed when it comes to… well, I don’t want to say doomed, but it’s on the back foot. Let’s say it comes from a… it’s a difficult task for a movie.” – Evan ([08:18])

• On Yeoman’s Credentials:

  “Wes Anderson's cinematographer, should be noted, the guy who shot basically everything. Rushmore, Bottle Rocket, Tenenbaums, Steve Zissou, Grand Budapest Hotel, Moonrise Kingdom, Prince Dispatch, Asteroid City. Like, all of them.” – Co-host 1 ([05:06])

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Love & Mercy and the Biopic Landscape: [01:10]–[02:04]
• Director Bill Pohlad’s Filmography Explored: [02:07]–[04:39]
• Cinematographer Robert Yeoman and Creative Origins: [04:39]–[06:12]
• Why Brian Wilson as a Subject Works: [06:12]–[08:15]
• The Problem of Translating Music Magic into Film: [08:15]–[End]

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For further deep dives into Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys, and music culture, subscribe to Jokermen Podcast. Full episodes and archives available via Patreon.

Transcript

[Co-host 1]

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[Evan]

Welcome to Jokerman at the Movies, at the Beach. I'm Evan.

[Co-host 1]

I'm in.

[Evan]

Well, it's that time, finally. It's the. The time when we get to decide if Love and Mercy from what year? 2014. Wow. That long ago already?

[Co-host 1]

I mean, 12 years ago. It's not that long ago. We're pretty late in the game.

[Evan]

I just feel like that was longer than 12 years ago. Feels like a long time.

[Co-host 1]

I mean, it was a different world 12 years ago.

[Evan]

In terms of music biopics, it wasn't. Because what I was going to say is, like, is this better? Do we like it better? How do we feel with this film compared to the other big music biopic of recent times?

[Co-host 1]

I've certainly got some thoughts on along those lines.

[Evan]

Yeah, but you.

[Co-host 1]

Are you trying to avoid that conversation?

[Evan]

I'm saying that without saying what I think about this movie. I. I feel like these movies seem like they could have come out the exact same year in terms of, like, the way they seem in certain ways.

[Co-host 1]

Like they don't see that. Although I think that maybe says more about the more recent movie.

[Evan]

Right.

[Co-host 1]

Than it does about this movie.

[Evan]

I think it might say something about music biopic movies, though, as a.

[Co-host 1]

Yes, yes, it might, anyway.

[Evan]

But I feel like maybe we're getting ahead of ourselves.

[Co-host 1]

That's right. Well, it's. It's Love and Mercy. It's the movie about Brian Wilson, starring Paul Dano and John Cusack, directed by Bill Pollard. Yeah. You heard of this guy? You know this guy? Well, no, I didn't either. At least until doing a little bit of research. Interesting. Interesting character. Well, maybe. Maybe an interesting character. He was mostly this director, Polad, Mostly a producer, son of some sort of billionaire financier who owned the Minnesota Twins baseball team. Oddly, the guy directed one movie in 1990, then had a whole bunch of producer credits, including Brokeback Mountain, the tree of Life, 12 Years a Slave, Tree of Life, all pretty good movies.

[Evan]

And Also another Malick, A Hidden Life.

[Co-host 1]

Does he.

[Evan]

That's also an executive producer credit for him.

[Co-host 1]

And then all of a sudden, 2014 comes a full 24 years after his directorial debut, Love and Mercy, comes out, and then he's done. I think he's done one more movie since then. I realized I haven't seen this movie, but I'm kind of curious about it. It's the Donnie and Joe Emerson biopic.

[Evan]

I didn't know that existed.

[Co-host 1]

I remember seeing posters for that when it got buried kind of in early Covid or mid Covid era shit when no one was really paying attention to the movies. So I kind of want to watch that movie.

[Evan]

Executive producer. A Prairie Home Companion. The. The movie.

[Co-host 1]

I didn't even know there was a movie. A Prairie Home Companion.

[Evan]

Yeah, it's a Robert Altman picture.

[Co-host 1]

Gee, boy. All right, well, it's like.

[Evan]

Got a huge cast.

[Co-host 1]

Oh, he's. He's involved with that. That fucking David Byrne, whatever thing.

[Evan]

David Burns, American Utopia. Yeah.

[Co-host 1]

Cornball Supreme.

[Evan]

David Burns, something called Time out of Mind, which I don't know what that is.

[Co-host 1]

And also, it's an album by Bob Dylan.

[Evan]

It's a movie. That song by Steely Dan and Into the Wild Producer that you remember with.

[Co-host 1]

Who's in that? Emile Hirsch.

[Evan]

Right, yeah. Emil Hirsch.

[Co-host 1]

Emile Hirsch. Oh, yeah. Sean Penn, recently Oscar winning.

[Evan]

Anyway, a lot of movies, but this is his own. And it's. It's. Well.

[Co-host 1]

Well, yeah, it seems to have been something of a passion project for him. I think he initially had envisioned someone else directing. I think maybe the cinematographer. He envisioned directing. If I remember the reading that I did correctly. Photographed by Robert Yeoman. His last name is literally just Yeoman.

[Evan]

Yeoman.

[Co-host 1]

Yeoman Farmer, which is funny. But then this guy says, hey, you got. And this is Wes Anderson's cinematographer, should be noted, the guy who shot basically everything. Rushmore Bottle Rocket, Tenenbaums. Steve Zissou, Grand Budapest Hotel, Moonrise Kingdom, Prince Dispatch, Asteroid City. Like, all of them. So obviously some credits for this cat as well. But the guy said, you know, you got such a good idea or you got such a firm grasp on what kind of movie you want to make here. Bill Pollad, why don't you just go ahead and direct it yourself? And so, sure enough, he did. What do we think about the. I guess before we talk about the movie as such, what do we think about the concept of making a movie about Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys? Not the first Brian Wilson movie to be made. We had plans to also talk about The Beach Boys. An American Family, I believe it's called, which is supposed to be just a torturous, like, laugh out loud, funny at moments. Made for TV biopic from, I think, 2000. But I just. I didn't have time for that. So, yeah, this is the only movie we get to watch today.

[Evan]

I watched a few minutes of it on YouTube, and the things that you're saying seem to be true.

[Co-host 1]

Yeah. So maybe we'll circle back to that conversation at some point down the line. But, you know, the Beach Boys, Rich text. Rich, to say the least. And certainly documentaries have been made about them. Other dramatic pictures as well. This one, I think, is certainly the most put together. The one with the biggest stars, the one with the most firepower behind it. But just the concept of making a film about Brian Wilson. Good idea, bad idea. Both. Neither.

[Evan]

Good idea, I think. Okay, I'll just say I think that this is a better idea than doing a movie about Bob Dylan in this similar fashion.

[Co-host 1]

Frankly, yes, I would tend to a

[Evan]

much better idea than that.

[Co-host 1]

Yeah, Well, I mean, I think that that, like, to me, that made itself apparent right away in this film. And I think the reason for me, at least in my reading, is. And this maybe is a little bit of a conversation about music biopics in general. There's just an element of corniness and cheesiness to the music biopic, like, that is just baked into the medium of this. This type of art. Art in quotes. And Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys are just more conducive to the cheese, to the corn, to the schmaltz. It's just part of the Beach Boys in a way, to me, at least, that it is not part of Bob Dylan. And so the fact that you're doing something cheesy and corny and schmaltzy about Brian Wilson, like, kind of de facto makes this work a little bit better than it does for Bob Dylan. Because that cheese and that corn and that schmaltz that belongs in Beach Boys world, that's a flavor and a scent I'm familiar with when I'm thinking about the Beach Boys. And it's just not something I associate with Bob at all.

[Evan]

When you say that there's an inherent corniness to the music biopic. I think part of that is because, like, it's a medium that is not another medium trying to communicate what's great about the other medium, which just seems right, like, doomed and like. Like, it's. It's uniquely doomed when it comes to. Well, I don't want to say doomed, but it's on the back foot. Let's say it comes from a. It's a difficult task for a movie. And I think, honestly, it's a task that. And a piece of music or an album has an easier time of, like. I think you can more easily, maybe more effectively communicate something about what makes movies special through music alone. Yeah, well, there you go. That's what. But I think you can do that in a way that, like, you actually have to, like, do some really contrived stuff, or you have to think totally out of the box or know exactly when not to think out of the box. There's so many complications to doing it, to doing a film that expresses how great music is. But you can hear a piece of music that is associated with film, and if it's executed in a certain way, you're thinking about that film. There you are, you are feeling the feelings, you are imagining the film and you are associating it automatically. This is why they sell soundtracks to movies.