The movie Amy is a classic tragedy from start to finish.
You could be led to believe that the story of the troubled British singer, Amy Winehouse, would be nothing different from the extensive media coverage she received before her untimely demise – but there is so much more to the story.
The singer described herself as quiet and timid before her father, who was never really there, left her mother when the soon-to-be star was just nine years old.
As a young girl, Winehouse suffered from depression, and not fully understanding what that meant, was prescribed a number of antidepressants to stabilise her moods – but the only true therapy for her was writing music and singing.
The film details the ups and downs that took hold of her as a young up-and-coming musician, and ultimately gives the audience a very personal look at the fallen starlet by showing how each song was derived from a real situation and written from deep within her heart.
The story also shows that three destructive forces took a hold of her life and were the cause of her spiral into the abyss – substance abuse, love and the feeling of abandonment.
It was her undying love for Blake Fielder, hounding paparazzi, drug and alcohol abuse, as well as the return of her father – all of which was covered in the media – that haunted the musician.
While the media always reported on her drug use, they seem not to have been aware of the fact that the use of hard narcotics only gripped Winehouse just a few short years before she died, rather than her entire career.
The movie details the life of the singer through a number of interviews with close friends, family and music industry giants, complemented by home movies and onstage video recordings.
What some may not have realised is that before her spiral out of control, the songstress was loved by all those who surrounded her because she had what was described as a way of making you feel like the most important person in the world.
She was described as common, raw and real by friends and family and her authentic personality was the reason she was so loved.
The deeply emotional memoirs of family and friends make this film a heart-wrenching diary of her life and a movie not to be missed.
