Delayed Reaction: Amy

The Pitch: Let's make everyone feel bad for making Amy Winehouse jokes from 2007-2011.

I didn't care much for Amy. I don't think it was bad and it wasn't poorly made. I just didn't like it very much. First of all, I've never cared for Winehouse's music. Liking the music isn't vital to a music documentary, but it sure helps. When Amy Winehouse's story builds to Back to Black as a big, career-making moment, and I don't care much for the music, sorry, but that impacts the effect some. That leaves the story of her life to carry my interest. Her death is tragic, but it's not like it was a great surprise either. She clearly had alcohol and drug problems. There aren't abrupt turns in the story. If it was a roller coaster, it would have some abrupt rises and drops but it would always stay on the track. I think the part that really connects with people* is how the documentary looks into her celebrity. She was a joke in the media at the same time that she was desperately in need of help. That's rough. Whenever the film drags out another clip of an offhand joke made about her on some late night show or awards ceremony, I feel bad. And it's always crazy to see clips of celebrities trying to walk to their car and getting surrounded by photographers. These things are unsettling but hardly shocking. I think the film relies on the viewer having more empathy than I do.

*After all, it won all the awards it could that year and holds a strong RottenTomatoes rating.

To recap. I didn't care for the music of the central character. The story is told in a traditional, linear way. The editing is technically sound (I normally prefer that to editing that calls attention to itself). There isn't anything about Amy Winehouse's life and death that I found cinematic. I didn't find her story substantially different enough from all the other cautionary tales that came before her to single this out as something special. In other words, it's not bad, but I didn't care for it.

Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend