Back to Black

Truth, if it were needed, that Lesley Manville can turn her hand to anything, but otherwise this is a rather unremarkable biopic of a woman whose character, I must confess, I didn't actually like very much. She is the nan of Amy (Marisa Abela) and the two have a special bond. Amy lives with her mum who is divorced from her dad Mitch (Eddie Marsan). He fancies himself as a bit of a crooner and she is steeped in jazz, determined to write her own songs and make a success of herself - on her own terms. Enter Nick (Sam Buchanan) who works for music mogul Simon Fuller and she is, after an initial bit of hostility, signed up and on her way. The remainder of the chronology is all pretty straightforward as Sam Taylor-Johnson decides to focus on an entirely speculative look at how her personal life developed. Amy's increasingly strained relationship with her friends and her father, her grandmother's terminal illness and her "toxic co-dependent" relationship with the charismatic Blake (Jack O'Connell). There's no doubting that many of her songs are great - even if the role of Mark Ronson in any of that is largely ignored, and hats off to Abela for putting her own slant on them. She does her own singing and though she does rather over-egg it, she does imbue a sense of the sheer force of personality this woman had. O'Connell, too, does well enough - especially with his Shangri-La dance in the pub when they meet, but somehow the whole narrative is just too bitty and episodic. The presentation of her character is way too shallow and frankly she is portrayed as a bit of an obnoxious brat. Her increasing exposure to the hounding paparazzi is well illustrated and that growing sense of exasperation obvious, but again we jump around too much as we seem to be rushing to a conclusion we know all about. At two hours it is too long in many ways and too short in others. The dialogue offers us little insight into just who she was and by the end, I felt sad for her but can't say I really cared about any of them. The aggression of the photographers seems to receive a disproportionate share of the blame for her predicament whilst rather discounting her own series of bad choices fuelled by her own immaturity and by the public's obsessions with watching what it builds up come crashing down. They couldn't sell their photos if we didn't want to buy them. A memorable musical legacy left behind by one who, along with so many other ground-breaking but flawed musical geniuses, might just have been better left for our ears.

Marisa Abela's portrayal of Amy Winehouse is a standout in an otherwise messy film. Her performance is a solid 10/10 and deserves a standing ovation.

But the film itself falls short, tangled in a disjointed script that leaves the audience emotionally adrift. There's a big disconnect between the characters and the viewers, making it hard to really connect with the story. In contrast, Asif Kapadia's documentary "Amy" broke our hearts by offering an intimate look into the life of a woman many of us never met but felt we knew by the end.

For those who don't know Winehouse's tumultuous journey, this film doesn't offer much clarity. It meanders through her life, failing to paint a clear picture of the real Amy. Despite the stellar cast, their great performances can't save the film's fragmented storytelling.

The movie glosses over crucial aspects of Amy's life, simplifying her complex struggles into a narrative that lacks the emotional depth and authenticity that her story deserves.

The key credit to this film was Marisa Abela's portrayal of Amy.

Jack O'Connell is one of my firm faves and can bring charisma to any character he plays.

The film uses Amy's songs to fit in with the narrative, rather than the accurate timeline in which they were released.

It was an entertaining watch but offered a simplified view of Amy's life and turned it into nothing more than a toxic love story. The relationship with her parents wasn't really covered and the timeline of events didn't show how a mix of fame and drugs can take their toll over time.

I watched the 2015 documentary 'Amy' shortly after and would recommend this if you're wanting an insight into the life of Amy Winehouse.

This film would be good as a fictional film about made up people, but average as a biopic about a real person's life.

Amy Winehouse had a tumultuous life, full of success and drama, but this film does no make justice to her legacy.

The story is narrated on a chaotic way, like if parts of the movie was left on the cutting room. One minute she was living with her mum in a flat and the next she was living in a house in Camden with a flatmate that disappeared inexplicably.

One minute she was a young 18 year old and the next she was a successful singer that quit her label. Is like her career and achievements were not interested for the screenplay, if you didn't know Winehouse story and this is the first time you see it, you would think that the girl was just a bit stupid. The only interesting thing that happened to her was Blake, and for those that followed her career we know that Blake was not good for her, and she had more interesting things in her life than being obsessed with that man.

She sang with Tony Bennet! And was like the peak of her career! No mention of that; she lived in the Caribbean trying to get better, and also no mention of it.

Is sad that Hollywood just simplifies someone's life for a movie and then that's it... very very sad to see what her legacy has been turned to.

"Back to Black" delivers a heartfelt tribute to Amy Winehouse, brilliantly capturing the essence of an icon whose talent and personal struggles left an indelible mark on the music world. This film doesn't merely navigate through the vibrant life Amy led amidst Camden's gritty charm; it delves deep, portraying not just her artistic brilliance but also her profound vulnerabilities. It masterfully showcases the overwhelming pressures of fame and scrutinizes the relentless nature of the celebrity machine, presenting a narrative that's as compelling as it is heart-wrenching. This isn't just a recount of a music legend's life; it's an invitation to see beyond the performer to the person, offering a richly nuanced appreciation of her life, her sharp wit, and her brutal honesty.

Marisa Abela's portrayal of Amy is captivating, embodying the singer's raw and fragile essence in a performance that's incredibly authentic. She brings to life Amy's desperate longing for love and acceptance, along with her profound sense of loneliness, making her portrayal deeply resonate. Abela's Amy is not just a public figure but a person seeking connection in a world that often feels cold and unforgiving. While the film does dwell on the more tragic aspects of Amy's story, including her struggles with a toxic relationship, it's this exploration of her search for love and the stark loneliness she faced that adds a profound layer of depth to the narrative. The movie, despite its flaws and sometimes narrow focus, manages to strike a chord, particularly for those moved by Amy's music or touched by her life story. "Back to Black" might not capture every nuance of Amy's life with perfect clarity, but it's a deeply moving portrayal that echoes the bittersweet reality of her extraordinary yet tragically short journey.