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Amy Winehouse documentary reveals tragic truths

Winehouse at the start of her career in 2004. Photo: Getty

Winehouse at the start of her career in 2004. Photo: Getty

In his latest documentary Amy, director Asif Kapadia tells the despairing story of Amy Winehouse’s battle with addiction.

Kapadia presents a personal side of the troubled singer, illustrated through the use of archival footage, photographs, voiceover interviews and an on-screen analysis of the star’s lyrics.

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A shy girl of Jewish descent, the London-born singer had said prior to stardom she didn’t think she could handle fame without “going mad” – a self-fulfilling prophecy which ended in her untimely death at age 27 from alcohol poisoning.

Amy characterises the many highs and lows of Winehouse’s life as we follow her journey from childhood to adolescence.

Winehouse at the start of her career in 2004. Photo: Getty

Winehouse at the start of her career in 2004. Photo: Getty

Rather than re-hashing information from the tabloids, Kapadia presents a different side of Amy Winehouse shown through previously unseen footage.

Archival videos paint the musician as a colourful character, from her impromptu yet soulful rendition of Happy Birthday at a friend’s party, to her droll narration of the features of her holiday home in Majorca, delivered in a pseudo-Spanish accent.

The footage is at times grainy and disorderly, though this is largely hidden by the emotional punch it packs.

Interviews with Winehouse’s family, friends and management present differing perspectives of the musician. Some attempt to absolve themselves of responsibility for the star’s descent, including Winehouse’s mother who claims she thought the singer’s struggle with bulimia was “just a phase”.

Winehouse with her husband, Blake Fielder Civil. Photo: Getty

Winehouse with her husband, Blake Fielder-Civil. Photo: Getty

Winehouse’s absentee father and drug-addled ex-husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, are seen as having a damaging influence on the musician.

Fielder-Civil acknowledges that he introduced his ex-wife to heavy drugs like cocaine, though he has rejected any responsibility for her eventual death.

“I feel like my own legacy as far as Amy goes is that I ruined this amazing person,” he told the Times Magazine.

“If I genuinely believed I (ruined her) I probably would really struggle getting through day to day.

“I don’t think I ruined her, no. I think we found each other and certain people need to realise that she did have other addictions before she met me.

“She wasn’t a happy, well-adjusted young woman, you know, and I find it disrespectful to imply I was some Machiavellian puppet master.”

In spite of this, he appears slightly more remorseful than her father Mitch Winehouse, a man who is portrayed as opportunistic, walking out on his daughter when she was just nine years old, only to return later to exploit the singer’s fame.

Her failure to initially enter rehab is described by friends and family as a “missed opportunity”, despite her father’s insistence she didn’t need it at the time.

Winehouse and her father, Mitchell. Photo: Getty

Winehouse and her father, Mitchell. Photo: Getty

In the midst of all the chaos some harsh lessons emerge about the media’s role in vilifying and lampooning troubled celebrities. A question can be raised as to whether a media witch-hunt affected the star’s mental health, particularly as comedians and journalists continued to lambaste the singer during her troubled final years.

Winehouse’s candid and poetic lyrics are used throughout, reminding viewers exactly why she was so highly regarded.

You’ll be moved to tears as you witness the end of Winehouse, an incredibly talented singer-songwriter taken too soon. Emotions run high throughout the film, though Kapadia manages to find the right balance between hopelessness and optimism.

The light at the end of the tunnel is footage of a duet with one of Winehouse’s idols, legendary jazz singer Tony Bennett. He credits the star as one of the greats and imparts some final words of wisdom to the audience: “Life teaches you to live it, if you can live long enough.”

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