“I don’t write songs to be famous. I write songs because I don’t know what I would do otherwise.” The slightly casual tone, the skull-like look, the black-outlined look: Amy Winehouse is back. A trailer posted online this Friday reveals the first images from the biopic directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson. The director was also at the helm of the film about John Lennon’s young years, Nowhere Boy.
Expected in April 2024, Back to Black, produced by StudioCanal and Monumental Pictures, features actress Marisa Abela, 27 years old. Film buffs were able to see her in the series Industry on HBO. Horseshoe tattooed on the shoulder, thick line of liner, fiery gaze and signature hairstyle, the actress, who here plays her first major role in the cinema, is transformed. She will be surrounded by several faces from the big and small British screen: Lesley Manville, who played Princess Margaret in seasons 5 and 6 of The Crown plays her grandmother (Cynthia Winehouse), Eddie Marsan (The Gentleman, Fair Play) plays his father (Mitch Winehouse) and Juliet Cowan, his mother Janis. Jack O’Connell (Fists Against the Walls, Godless…) is also in the cast and plays the role of Blake Fielder-Civil, her ex-husband who was held partly responsible for her death.
Also read Who is Marisa Abela, the actress who will resurrect Amy Winehouse?
The London icon, harassed by the press and suffering from addiction, died suddenly at the age of 27 in 2011, following an alcohol overdose. This biopic aims to pay homage to the shooting star-shaped trajectory of one of the greatest soul-women of her time. The synopsis states that the film will focus on “the life and music of Amy Winehouse, through the creation of one of the most iconic albums of our time, inspired by her passionate and tormented love story with Blake Fielder -Civil.”
This brief but incandescent life had already been brought to the screen by Asif Kapadia in 2015. The documentary, soberly titled Amy, highlighted the demons of the British star. It was presented at the Cannes Film Festival and won the Oscar for Best Documentary Film.
In a few months, fans will be able to rediscover the life of the international star in theaters. In the meantime, they can let themselves be carried away by the eternal melody of Back to Black which, of course, punctuates this promising first trailer.
