~AMY . . new edit: AUG 6, 9:14 am

‘AMY’, (2015) – a film by ASIF KAPADIA
FILM REVIEW by NANCY SMITH, AUGUST 4, 2015

yep, we DO eat our young.

AMY WINEHOUSE – A YOUNG TEEN ON SUMMER VACATION.
IMAGE VIA @amy_filmuk

AMY. a young teen on vacation, much as many of you are. talented. and with dreams as big and, as unknown – as that big summer sky.

no, no, no. it’s not just a “sad and depressing” story. it’s a powerful, fascinating document – an epic film painting a vivid, living 3-D portrait of an epic talent, an astonishing voice, an astonishing song writer, and an astonishing personality. Now playing to packed houses, at the Sunshine theater on Houston St. in NYC. and for good reason – it’s a powerful, powerful, soulful film composed entirely of archival footage, and the voices of the people who knew her, and above all . . her voice, dark and dusky, illuminating her shadowy lyrics, and her life. and all, up front, up close, and in the first person personal . . early home movie clips, archival media interviews, recording sessions, and performances. and, above all – her music, her big voice, her phrasing, her song writing – all deeply black magic – and absolutely hypnotizing . . on the soundtrack.

the first few frames of the films trailer summation-capture it all in a couple of e seconds: back to bbbblack. the brilliant musicality that rolls right out of her, like water off a duck’s back. natural talent – if you need a definition. that’s Amy.

I knew her dad was an ass-hole, and that he left the family when she was 9 years old, but in this film he actually says he ‘left’ the family way before that. he fell in love with another woman when Amy was at the ripe old age of 18 months, but he didn’t have the guts to leave until she was 9. so tell me why she keep saying “he was never there”, even when he was “there”.
tell me, we don’t eat our young. and of course the most talented, the most rare, the most brilliant are going to be – the most tragic victims.
no wonder evolution has us so dumbed-down, we can’t manage to parent the naturally numb-ed ones, let alone the ones that shine and . . divine, like the natural-born stars they are.
natural-born stars vs. natural born killers ?
I hate to say who wins the equation on this specific playing field.

watch: the ‘AMY’ TRAILER