STAR RATING: ***** Brilliant **** Very Good *** Okay ** Poor * Awful
Amy Winehouse (Marisa Abela) was a girl from the backstreets of Camden, brought up on the tunes of Billie Holiday and the like, and works to emulate their sounds in her music. Signed by Simon Fuller to his record label, Amy breaks free under the guidance of her dad, Mitch (Eddie Marsan) and joins a label more befitting her image and sound, leading to the creation of her iconic titular album, before beginning a whirlwind romance with Blake Fielder Civil (Jack O' Connoll), a cockney wide boy who she met in a pub, only to descend into a downward spiral of drug and alcohol addiction that brought everything to a crashing end.
It's staggering that over ten years have now passed since Amy Winehouse's tragic, untimely passing, and it makes it easier to forget the impact she left on the cultural consciousness of the music scene. She was definitely a modern great, someone remembered even after such a long time has passed since she joined the morbid '27 club.' And her life story certainly makes for a compelling big screen dramatisation, which director Sam Taylor-Johnson has accomplished here, a project bringing to life the spirit and soul of her music, as well as the heartbreaking decline of her being.
The performances, of course, are the driving force of the film, and all eyes fall first on lead star Abella, who manages a hugely convincing, warts and all portrayal of Amy, an unflinchingly foul mouthed and forthright North London girl, traits similar to fellow NL artist Adele, who doesn't mince her words, but shows her vulnerability and human frailty when success hits and the paparazzi start chasing her, or even on stage when her demons hit home. Co star Marsan seems to be employing a touch of method acting, gaining a bit of weight to play Mitch, but is similarly convincing in his supporting role. Now in his thirties, O'Connoll still has conviction as a swaggering bad boy, and projects the appeal that could have drawn Amy into his world.
Taylor-Johnson manages to cram a succession of Winehouse's back catalogue into the proceedings, before a sudden pull the rug out from under your feet ending that underlines the suddenness of her taking from the world. This was a live-fast-die-young character, whose ending was dictated by her lifestyle, but left an unforgettable impact. ****
Amy Winehouse (Marisa Abela) was a girl from the backstreets of Camden, brought up on the tunes of Billie Holiday and the like, and works to emulate their sounds in her music. Signed by Simon Fuller to his record label, Amy breaks free under the guidance of her dad, Mitch (Eddie Marsan) and joins a label more befitting her image and sound, leading to the creation of her iconic titular album, before beginning a whirlwind romance with Blake Fielder Civil (Jack O' Connoll), a cockney wide boy who she met in a pub, only to descend into a downward spiral of drug and alcohol addiction that brought everything to a crashing end.
It's staggering that over ten years have now passed since Amy Winehouse's tragic, untimely passing, and it makes it easier to forget the impact she left on the cultural consciousness of the music scene. She was definitely a modern great, someone remembered even after such a long time has passed since she joined the morbid '27 club.' And her life story certainly makes for a compelling big screen dramatisation, which director Sam Taylor-Johnson has accomplished here, a project bringing to life the spirit and soul of her music, as well as the heartbreaking decline of her being.
The performances, of course, are the driving force of the film, and all eyes fall first on lead star Abella, who manages a hugely convincing, warts and all portrayal of Amy, an unflinchingly foul mouthed and forthright North London girl, traits similar to fellow NL artist Adele, who doesn't mince her words, but shows her vulnerability and human frailty when success hits and the paparazzi start chasing her, or even on stage when her demons hit home. Co star Marsan seems to be employing a touch of method acting, gaining a bit of weight to play Mitch, but is similarly convincing in his supporting role. Now in his thirties, O'Connoll still has conviction as a swaggering bad boy, and projects the appeal that could have drawn Amy into his world.
Taylor-Johnson manages to cram a succession of Winehouse's back catalogue into the proceedings, before a sudden pull the rug out from under your feet ending that underlines the suddenness of her taking from the world. This was a live-fast-die-young character, whose ending was dictated by her lifestyle, but left an unforgettable impact. ****