- “Back to Black. The Amy Winehouse Story” tells the story of an extraordinary artist, chronicling the years she spent in the vibrant London city of Camden, which she called home, and her rise to global fame. The film focuses on the artist's extraordinary genius and creativity, and also tries to understand her demons.
- The title character is played by a rising film star Marisa Abela, known from the HBO series “The Industry”. She is the director of the film Sam Taylor-Johnsonauthor of “Fifty Shades of Grey.”
- The title will be shown in Polish cinemas from April 19. Watch the trailer!
It is possible that the singer's biographers, fans who, apart from the reception of her music, also know most of the facts of her biography in quite detail, will find a scratch in the glass here and there. This possibility always exists. However, this will not change the fact that as a strictly film work, with its own developed dramaturgy, a well-thought-out plan for a screen story, and finally a portrait of the artist herself, who unfortunately died prematurely, “Back to Black” He defends himself quite well. Taylor-Johnson serves us viewers with a solid story, a film drama, with some elements of musical cinema as well. However, there is nothing musical about it. This has proven true in “Rocketman”, Elton John's biography. Amy is a slightly different case, but is it that different? The thing is that the screen is most interested in those characters who have been affected by the drama's stigma. Those who either won, like Elton. Or they lost, like Amy. She failed, and the film itself is a fictional record of what those days, the rise and fall, looked like.
The Achilles heel of this type of cinema is building a story that tells about someone's life so as not to lose what is important in the film, i.e. the logical narrative line. Images that jump from episode to episode turn out to be a failure. The trick is to show it in such a way that the sequence of events is a logical and at the same time emotional structure. This is exactly what the author of the painting succeeds in doing “John Lennon. The boy from nowhere” from 2008. Here, one thing actually results from the other, and the spiral that accompanies the heroine seems to be understandable and legible. It looks like a well-crafted film, not another mosaic biography. At the same time, of course, the director interprets subsequent facts from Winehouse's life, tries to bring them closer to us and outline them. However, it is still in the spirit of film art, constructed on the basis or on the basis of the heroine's biography.
And this is not a record of Amy as a musician, singer, songwriter. All this is, of course, present, but it is not the foreground. This one is her emotions, her need for self-determination and love. And since Winehouse's work resulted from what she experienced herself, the best things were born from pain, loss and disappointment. Just like the British artist's second album, “Back to Black” from 2006, which brought her worldwide fame and five Grammy Awards, including Song of the Year – for the hit single “Rehab”. And then there were no more…
I have already read that the above film did not avoid the prospect of paying tribute to the singer. That he presented her better. I will not argue with such arguments. The film shows a young girl who is persistently chasing something, mainly throwing herself around, and to make the pain less painful, she takes alcohol. It has its ups and downs. Sometimes he is just a cool, temperamental person, other times he is someone completely different. At most, one can ask oneself a question here: how does Taylor-Johnson's plot relate to Asif Kapadia's documentary titled? “Amy” from 2015? It's just that these two productions use completely different means of expression. But in fact, the character of Winehouse's father, Mitch, played here by the excellent Eddie Marsan, is like two different people, if we insist on comparing both productions.
What it is, however, purely subjectively The real value of Sam Taylor-Johnson's film is Marisa Abela's performance as Amy Winehouse. The actress, known from the series “Industry”, with a touch of Polish genes, will blow your mind with her performance. I quickly forget the face of Winehouse herself and completely believe in Marisa Abela's. She actually is that character. He plays such an emotional range that hats off to him. Moreover, she really sings the hits of her progenitor. And the way he sings. Yes, her voice is a little higher, but thanks to this we do not feel like she is imitating her, but rather a kind of cover that deserves to be listened to on its own. Abela proves that she is not only a very mature actress, but also a solid singer. Her performance in this film is a few notches up in his rating. Without a doubt. It's a one-man show that holds the entire project on its shoulders and comes out completely unscathed. This title cannot be omitted for its own sake. Apart from the fact that it's just a good film.
I mentioned the title at the beginning “Control” by Anton Corbijn. If I were to compare and connect Sam Taylor-Johnson's film with something, it would be with the image of the creator of music videos and photo sessions of bands such as Depeche Mode, Metallica or Red Hot Chili Peppers. And, of course “John Lennon. The boy from nowhere”, which is understandable. However, it's not about references, it's about good cinema. And this is what it is. And that history was written by life itself? And who will write it better…
8/10
“Back to Black. The Amy Winehouse Story” (Back to Black), dir. Sam Taylor-Johnson, Great Britain, USA 2024, distributor: Kino Świat, cinema premiere: April 19, 2024.