‘Back to Black’ biopic: Amy Winehouse’s journey with addiction and stardom

The first of the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) when one is trying to quit alcohol is honesty.

The 12 steps, which were officially launched in a book in 1939, begin with an admission that you are powerless over drugs or alcohol.

When one admits to this, therein lies the journey to healing. I couldn’t help but ponder on the torrid life of an addict while watching the Amy Winehouse biopic, Back to Black.

Throughout the film, one sees alcohol’s fixed presence in Winehouse’s life; in the joyful, distressing and fun times.

The film paints a vibrant picture of the Camden streets of London which she called home and the struggles of global fame while trying to remain herself and not be another Spice Girl.

Back to Black honours Winehouse’s artistry, wit, and honesty, while at the same time trying to understand her demons.

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Her demons

There’s a scene in the movie where the award-winning singer is woken up by a bang on the door from her first manager, Nick Shymansky, after another night of drinking.

Seeing a wound on her head, Shymansky calls her father to try and convince her to go to rehab because she can’t continue living the way she does.

Her father, Mich, simply dismisses the idea of her being sent to rehab, taking his daughter’s word that she’s fine.

“Addiction causes a level of denial that can be quite challenging for onlookers to believe. No matter how much people push someone into recovery, unless they accept there’s a problem, overcoming it is almost impossible,” the 12 steps reads.

The aforementioned quote is captured in lyrics from one of Winehouse’s songs, Help Yourself, where she sings: I can’t help you if you won’t help yourself/No I can’t help you if you don’t help yourself.

The biopic which comes out in cinemas today is directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson and written by Matt Greenhalgh.

“There is no greater love than the love people have for Amy whose music has touched their souls and provoked their hearts into feeling that she is theirs and theirs alone. A small bird of a woman with the power of a lioness and a voice that transcends our time,” said the director.

Actress Marisa Abela portrays Winehouse with Eddie Marsan as Amy’s father and Jack O’Connell plays the character of her then boyfriend (and later ex-husband), Blake Fielder-Civil.

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Music and family

The only other thing more present in Winehouses’s life was her love for family and music. In the same way booze seemed cathartic to her, music freed her from her demons.

Amy’s grandmother, Cynthia Winehouse, was a singer and so was her father Mich.

Cynthia’s passing had an adverse effect on Winehouses, coming at a time when she was dealing with her break-up from Fielder-Civil.

Winehouses idolised Cynthia, tattooing her grana’s name on her right arm. The movie also explores her unhealthy relationship with Fielder-Civil.

After their first night together, in a scene, she finds him sniffing drugs in the bedroom and unflinchingly tells him: “Guys who do Class A drugs are mugs.”

The film insinuated that Fielder-Civil wasn’t the one who introduced Winehouse to drugs, outside of marijuana. Her first intake of such drugs was during their break-up.

Whether visiting the zoo together, playing pool or enjoying a high from a variety of drugs, she seemingly loved him.

The withdrawal symptoms she experienced during her break-ups with Fielder-Civil drove her into inflicting pain on herself through binge-drinking.

In a 2018 interview with Piers Morgan, he said that he’ll “always carry a burden of guilt” for what happened to Winehouse, but that, “Amy didn’t do anything Amy didn’t want to do.”

“I feel I am the only person that’s ever taken responsibility and have done since Amy was alive,” he said, in a nod to Mitch Winehouse, who had previously accused Fielder-Civil of “killing” his daughter.

But pain was a double-edged sword for the Rehab singer; while it plunged her into an abyss; it also saw her rise to global stardom as she created her critically Grammy-award winning sophomore album, Back to Black.

Before her passing Winehouse admitted to being an alcohol addict, checking into rehab. This was her most positive response to Fielder-Civil’s request for a divorce.

But like most addicts, she experienced a relapse in her pursuit of sobriety. She was found dead on 11 October from alcohol poisoning at 27 years old.

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