Two periods in the life of Brian Wilson, a founding member and one of the seen driving forces of The Beach Boys, is presented. The first is the mid-1960s, during the height of The Beach Boys' fame. The band has recently fired their manager, Brian's father Murry Wilson, a domineering man whose abuse of Brian when he was a child would have profound effect on him, and who would wield his influence on Brian and the band despite his firing. Rather than go on tour with the band to Japan, Brian instead decides to remain in the studio to prepare for their next album. He does not want to continue with the same "California beach" sound that made them famous, but instead listen to and experiment with the new sounds going through his head, a move that ultimately would not sit well with the rest of his bandmates, who would see the move as self-indulgent. The second is the mid-1980s, when he is under the care of Eugene Landy, who is his legal guardian and thus who controls everything in Brian's life. Gene, who has diagnosed Brian as a paranoid schizophrenic, has made Brian cut ties with everyone in his family, including both his former bandmates, but also his two daughters. It is during this period that Brian would also meet and begin a relationship with Melinda Ledbetter, a Cadillac salesperson. As she spends more and more time with Brian, Melinda begins to question Gene's role in Brian's life, he seemingly doing things for his own benefit rather than Brian's overall well-being.::Huggo