Back to Black writer explains avoiding Amy Winehouse’s ‘painful moments’ | Films | Entertainment
Back to Black, the controversial biopic on legendary singer Amy Winehouse, has hit cinemas leaving some fans questioning where the Grammy winner’s more notorious sightings are.
The 27-year-old had a very public struggle with addiction and alcoholism before her sudden death in 2011.
In the months leading up to her death, before the singer had a string of shows across Europe many of which were cancelled or ended early reportedly due to her inebriated state and ultimately ending in Belgrade, Serbia, which tragically became her final performance.
The infamous show was widely reported on as countless pieces of footage from concertgoers show the Back to Black hitmaker stumbling across the stage, fumbling her words and hugging herself as she held back tears while the crowd booed.
However, despite being one of her most notorious appearances, the devastating appearance doesn’t feature in her new biopic as writer Matt Greenhalgh explained the omission.
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Speaking to Daily Express at the London premiere of his new flick, the screenwriter explained: “We wanted it to be a celebratory movie and that performance is really upsetting…for everybody. Her, her family, people watching it.”
He revealed that early on in the writing process, with his longtime collaborator and the film’s director Sam Taylor-Johnson by his side, they had opted to leave out a few “painful moments” of the Rehab hitmaker’s life.
Matt said: “There’s a few of those performances that we decided we weren’t going to go near.”
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The Belgrade performance in 2011 took place barely a month before her death at the age of 27 and the Back to Black film has come under scrutiny, even before its release.
Some fans have argued it is “too soon” or would be “disrespectful” to broach Amy’s life and addictions through film, although her family have been supportive of the endeavour and helped behind-the-scenes to create the blockbuster.
Juliet Cowan, who plays Amy’s mother Janis Winehouse, revealed that not only did she manage to meet with the real Janis for a quick chat to learn more about her but she also made the singer’s dad, Mitch, burst into tears when he first saw her dressed up in costume, hair and makeup to resemble his ex-wife.
Back to Black is currently in cinemas.
