Back to Black, Movie Review

I'm going to be honest, it wasn't that bad. Okay, it wasn't great but if you like Amy Winehouse and you want to know the downfall of such an icon then this film is for you.

I had a few issues with this movie. One being the social media promotion. The week before the release of the film I was met with some rather comical clips of Marisa Abela, who plays Amy , singing and talking in a very forced London accent. People weren't impressed with what they just witnessed and started to comment things like, "why does this feel like a snl skit" and "she doesn't sound like amy.. she sounds like fergie. (Not great casting choice. No shade!). The clips put onto TikTok may of put some people off watching the film, it definitely made me hesitant to purchase the ticket.

https://www.tiktok.com/@juliedeandrade/video/7352022199538093355?lang=en&q=back%20to%20black%20movie%20singing%20&t=1714492200202

What do you think of the singing?

When I was watching the film it didn't sound as bad as I was expecting, and I believe that is because they spliced some of Amy's real vocals with Marisa's. I think Amy had such a iconic voice that no matter how much vocal coaching you receive it is never going to match what she had.

Amy Winehouse

With Biopics becoming more in demand, because people love knowing about celebrities personal lives, you'd think they (Sam Taylor-Johnson) would focus on something other than the downfall of Amy Winehouse because that is all this film is about. There was little to nothing on the music production besides a short five minute montage of Amy in America working on her second album and drinking alot alongside that. This was my second issue, it focused way too much on the negatives and not everything that Amy achieved with her soulful jazz infused voice. We get it, she liked to drink more than the average person.

I also think this film was made too early and there wasn't much need for it. Amy passed away in 2011 and was scrutinised in the press for years leading up to her death. We didn't need to be retold what newspapers and magazines were telling us then, it just seems like a money grab.

The film has only been rated 37% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.6/10 on IMDb.