The biopic Back to Black, which tells the life story of exceptional musician Amy Winehouse, is now showing in German cinemas. The film is already causing controversy.
Having already seen numerous biopics about musicians such as Freddie Mercury, Elton John and most recently Bob Marley in cinemas in the past, Back to Black now tells the story of jazz and soul singer Amy Winehouse on the big screen. The adaptation by Sam Taylor-Johnson is almost as scandalous as the musician’s life. The cinema release of Back to Black has already been riddled with controversy.
We want to explain how the controversies surrounding the Amy Winehouse biopic are shaping up, how the film itself deals with the scandals from Winehouse’s life and what the background to the film is
A biopic about Amy Winehouse: Is it even necessary?
After her death in 2011, several attempts have already been made to bring a biopic about Amy Winehouse to the big screen. After projects with Noomi Rapace (Millennium trilogy) and Tania Raymonde (Goliath), among others, came to nothing, filmmaker Asif Kapadia took on the life of the musician in a documentary in 2015. Amy even won the Oscar for Best Documentary a year later and was widely celebrated by fans of the singer.
The plan to make a fictionalized biopic about Winehouse was still not written off by Hollywood. In 2018, the Amy Winehouse Estate, which manages the singer’s estate under the leadership of her father Mitch Winehouse, agreed to a film adaptation, which is now being released six years later as Back to Black. However, the mere existence of the film caused a furor among some fans
Trailer for the documentary Amy
They shared their displeasure on the rating portal Letterboxd and awarded the film zero points in advance. The question was raised as to whether a biopic about Winehouse would even be in bad taste, as the singer had already suffered enough from the exploitation of her life by the press until her tragic death. One user wrote angrily: “Let her rest in peace!” Another user joined in: “Guys, let’s not watch this for Amy’s sake”.
Other voices loudly doubted the parties involved behind the scenes of the film – above all director Sam Taylor-Johnson and leading actress Marisa Abela. However, the influence of Mitch Winehouse’s estate also caused stomach ache for some.
Scandal director Sam Taylor-Johnson and singing newcomer Marisa Abela – a questionable duo
Back to Black director Sam Taylor-Johnson has been repeatedly criticized in the past, both professionally and privately. She caused a stir with the film adaptation of the scandalous bestseller Fifty Shades of Grey, which was scathingly slated by the press and fans alike (the community on Moviepilot also only gave it a weak 4.3/10 points). But her directorial debut Nowhere Boy also made mixed headlines.
It was on the Nowhere Boy set that she met her future husband Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kick-Ass), who slipped into the leading role of the young John Lennon. The actor was only 18 years old at the time – a fact that led various parties to accuse the then 41-year-old director of grooming (as reported by Business Insider and Glamour, among others). For some movie fans, this is still a reason to boycott the director’s works in general.
(Marisa Abela in Back to Black)
Marisa Abela also faced a lot of criticism when she was cast as Amy Winehouse, because while the Barbie star was accused of not looking enough like the iconic singer from London, her singing talent was also questioned (according to TMZ, among others).
Sam Taylor-Johnson explained to Empire in advance that Abela performed all the vocals seen (and heard) in the film herself – even though the actress had no previous singing experience. Winehouse fans rightly doubted whether a novice singer could adequately imitate Amy Winehouse’s distinctive and unique voice
Influence of the Amy Winehouse Estate: Too one-sided story?
The fact that Back to Black was made under the mantle of the Amy Winehouse Estate can be seen as both a blessing and a curse for the movie. The involvement of the singer’s official estate naturally secured Back to Black the rights to her music and the opportunity to use it in the film.
At the same time, the film was made under a watchful eye – especially when it came to the portrayal of certain themes and relationships of Winehouse. First and foremost is the relationship with her father Mitch Winehouse, who has managed the estate since her death. Mitch Winehouse has often been said to have an ambivalent relationship with his daughter in the past.
He is said to have repeatedly dragged her into the limelight, even though she needed peace and quiet – or help – instead. Mitch Winehouse, a failed jazz musician, is said to have seen his own dream come true in his daughter’s fame. Archive footage from Asif Kapadia’s documentary Amy sheds some light on this problem, which was criticized by Mitch Winehouse when the film was released (according to The Guardian, among others).
(Marisa Abela and Jack O’Connell in Back to Black)
A critical examination of this topic is sought in vain in Back to Black. Instead, Winehouse’s ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil (Jack O’Connell) is pilloried in the biopic as the sole scapegoat. This interpretation was also actively supported by Mitch Winehouse in public after Winehouse’s death (e.g. The Guardian ) and therefore comes as no surprise in Back to Black. Here too, it is worth taking a look at the documentary Amy, which sheds more light on this relationship.
The story told by Amy Winehouse in Back to Black should therefore be taken with a grain of salt. The first press reviews of Back to Black have so far been mixed. At Rotten Tomatoes the film currently has a score of 50 percent with 22 reviews. You can now form your own opinion at the cinema
