The first reviews for the upcoming Amy Winehouse biopic, “Back to Black,” are largely mixed with criticism for the film but praise for lead actress Marisa Abela’s performance, following social media backlash from users who feared the film would exploit the trauma Winehouse faced in her life.

"Back To Black" World Premiere - Arrivals

Marisa Abela portrays Amy Winehouse in “Back To Black.” (Photo by Mike Marsland/WireImage)
Mike Marsland/WireImage

Key Facts

“Back to Black” has a 50% score on Rotten Tomatoes based on the first 18 critic reviews, indicating a “rotten” score—meaning fewer than 60% of critics gave it a positive review.

The film, directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson and starring Marisa Abela as Winehouse, reportedly follows the singer’s career through her death in 2011 at age 27.

“Back to Black” opens in U.K. cinemas on April 12 and U.S. theaters on May 17.

Chief Critics

Hamish Macbain, a Rotten Tomatoes top critic for the London Evening Standard, said the film was “so bad it made me gasp in horror,” citing “deep moral and ethical problems” and how the film “doesn’t bother to establish just how quickly Amy Winehouse became as famous as she did.” Rotten Tomatoes top critic Hayley Campbell criticized the film for Empire Magazine, lamenting the “weak script” and comparing it unfavorably to the 2015 documentary “Amy,” which won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. Rogan Graham, a Rotten Tomatoes top critic for Little White Lies, slammed the film for portraying Winehouse as a “friendless addict and tabloid joke” while serving as an “excellent alibi for those in Amy’s life who preyed upon her vulnerability and benefitted from her being overworked and exploited.”