Amy Winehouse Movie Savaged by Critics: 'Genuinely Feels Disrespectful'

The review embargo for the Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black has been lifted, with the movie receiving a brutal response from critics.

Starring English actress Marisa Abela as Winehouse, the film documents the late singer's tumultuous relationship with ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil (played by Godless actor Jack O'Connell), which inspired her to write her Grammy-winning 2006 album Back to Black.

The movie was directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson, who previously helmed the John Lennon biopic Nowhere Boy in 2009 and the 2018 drug drama A Million Little Pieces.

While critics are praising Abela's "thoroughly engaging" and "solid" performance, many savaged the "weak script" and "overly cautious" approach, accusing the film of sanding the rough edges off of Winehouse's life.

At the time of publishing, Back to Black currently holds a 20 percent critical score on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

Little White Lies' Digital Editor Hannah Strong called Back to Black "Evil" and "Morally repugnant!!"

"Not even bad in a way that is interesting or entertaining, just sad and anger-inducing from start to finish," she wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday.

"This genuinely feels disrespectful," commented @keyonté.

The Evening Standard's Hamish MacBain said the biopic was "so bad it made me gasp in horror," while Empire's Hayley Campbell accused the film of "cherry-picking" and reducing Winehouse to "a girl singing about a boy."

Despite being backed by Winehouse's estate, Back to Back has battled claims of exploitation since production began in July 2022. The "Rehab" singer passed away from alcohol poisoning in 2011 at just 27-years-old, after a public battle with drug and alcohol addiction.

The Independent's Charlotte O'Sullivan said concerns that the film capitalizes on Winehouse's struggles were unnecessary, with Back to Black sugar-coating the music icon's troubles.

"Sam Taylor-Johnson's portrait of the artist as a young woman is so determined to be celebratory that it barely touches on Winehouse's last year," she wrote in her two-star review. "The mood, by the end, is less boo-hoo than woohoo!"

However, The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw gave Back to Black four stars out of five, describing the film as "an urgent, warm, heartfelt dramatization."

Variety was also complimentary, calling the biopic "forthright and compelling."

When the trailer for Back to Black was released in January, the clip sparked uproar online, with many fans telling production company Studio Canal to "let Amy rest in peace."

Behind-the-scenes photos from the London set also caused controversy. The snaps showed Abela wearing one of Winehouse's trademark mini-dresses, along with her signature beehive and winged eyeliner.

The actress walked arm-in-arm with Fairplay star Eddie Marsan—who portrays the singer's father, Mitch Winehouse— into Ronnie Scott's jazz club in Soho.

Social media users slammed the costume choices as "cringe," with one commentator claiming: "SNL could do a better job."