DVD Review: ‘Amy’

Having attracted unanimous plaudits and awards success with his intensely engaging 2010 documentary Senna, about the life and death of race car paragon Ayrton Senna, British filmmaker Asif Kapadia turns his attentions to Amy Winehouse, another globally acknowledged figure whose star burnt so blindingly blight for such a short amount of time. Amy (2015), now the highest-grossing documentary in UK box-office history, adopts a similar approach to Kapadia’s previous film.

Amy charts the rise and fall of its subject through carefully edited stock footage and performances, painting a loving portrait of a difficult pop culture icon. After finding acclaim with her debut album Frank in 2003, Winehouse soon succumbed to the drink, drugs and debauched lifestyle that consumed her soon after the release of her second andfame. I would go mad,” which Kapadia retains if only to highlight the bitter ensuing irony of her foresight. Amidst the film – which is as good a representation of the destructiveness of drugs, fame and power as any – is an intriguing examination of the digital age and how fandom played a large part in the public’s perception of the singer, who made no qualms about fighting back whenever confronted with intrusive camera lenses.

This is all offset by a broad range of intimate footage, from her teenage years – where her vocal talents were so glaringly obvious – to home footage from the ensuing years where fame was introduced into her world. Chris King, who award-winning previous work includes Senna, deserves major kudos for his dexterous editing