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Voice of the BEEHIVE

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date12 April 2024
Publication titleHuddersfield Daily Examiner
LOVE was a losing game for Amy Winehouse

The heartache that dogged the north London-born singer's tragically brief life was a constant source of tabloid fascination and fuelled the creative fire of her songwriting, most notably on the award-winning second LP Back To Black which lays bare the relationship with her future husband, Blake Fielder-Civil.

Director Sam Taylor-Johnson and screenwriter Matt Greenhalgh, who first collaborated on John Lennon biopic Nowhere Boy, have created a respectful and moving film that keeps us - infuriatingly - at arm's length from the demons that ultimately engulfed the chanteuse.

At one point in Back To Black, Amy is asked why she continually presses the self-destruct button. "I don't know," she responds.

Nor does Taylor-Johnson's picture, which plays out scenes of alcohol abuse, jealousy, drug addiction and defiance with artful intoxication that feels at odds with the fiery, outspoken voice of a generation, who tells her manager at the beginning of their relationship that she ain't no Spice Girl.

Marisa Abela's full-blooded portrayal of Winehouse is sensational. She captures the hot-headedness and painful vulnerability of a Jewish girl who yearned to be a mother, and was frequently her own worst enemy.

"I'm not a feminist. I like boys too much," she smiles as she flirts with Jack O'Connell's swaggering Fielder-Civil, who introduces her to 1960s group The Shangri-Las by lip-syncing to Leader Of The Pack in a pub.

Abela performs her own vocals throughout...

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