Five Things to Do Instead of Watching Back to Black (2024)

I was recently overcome with an unfortunately timed illness; in and amongst some major assignments due, of course. At the closing of this ailment, I thought I would go to the movies. My great-grandmother has an ever-repeated anecdote of how a doctor once prescribed her “a trip to the cinemas” to cure her troubles. And I couldn’t agree more with its medicinal qualities. If I were to make a list of “Fletcher’s Five Favourite Things,” or “Five Things to Get Fletcher Out of a Funk,” sitting in a dark cinema would be one. 

So, with plenty of antibiotics and a perpetual lack of water in my system, my friend and I rushed into the tried-and-true Luna Leederville Cinema 1 right as Back to Black (2024) began. 

I should preface this not-review by saying that I am a huge Amy Winehouse fan. I’m too young to have been a fan from the beginning (her first album came out when I was three months old) but I distinctly remember the first time I heard “Rehab” on the radio in the backseat of my mum’s car—one in which the windows rolled down with a hand crank. It was my eighth birthday—five days after Amy had died. Then, years later, I discovered her first album, Frank (2003), and, like most teenage obsessions, made it my personality for a year. Though, Amy has become much more than just a high school fling for me. 

I generally have a rule against writing about something I dislike. Art is subjective and there’s already enough negativity in the world. That being said, I fear Back to Black (2024) is a somewhat harmful retelling of a woman’s life that only ended a relatively short time ago—and I believe there are better ways to celebrate Amy’s life and legacy than by watching this film. So, rather than focusing on a film where the director refused to fact-check anything, I thought I would share five things to do instead of watching Back to Black (2024).

1. Watch Amy (2015)

If you’re still in the mood to sit in a dark room illuminated by a screen for two hours, switch off the lights and open your laptop—because a more accurate account of Amy’s life, showcasing more than just the lows, can be found in the Oscar-winning A24 documentary, Amy (2015). Featuring real footage of the star herself, with audio interviews of the many real-life “characters” featured in the 2024 film, it’s an emotional cacophony of her life—gloriously sharing the successes of her music, the joys of her songwriting and her immense talent whilst also not shying away from the difficulties she faced. Whereas it felt like this year’s film villainised Amy for her drug use, the documentary reveals the abusive and forceful environment she found herself in. It’s devastating but it’s beautiful. It’s charming but it’s heartbreaking. It’s so very Amy, from beginning to end.

2. YouTube Deep-Dive

If you enjoyed the doco (though “enjoyed” is a difficult word for such a deeply devastating film), and appreciated Amy’s dark humour, I would suggest replacing your bedtime doom-scrolling, or morning wake-up scroll, with some purposeful investigation into some of Amy’s interviews and performances. There are even a bunch of social media pages dedicated to Amy’s memory, which tend to feature some clips. So doom scroll there if need be.

3. Read My Amy: The Life We Shared (2021)

In a post-Britney memoir world, I’m very much an advocate for a mistreated celebrity’s agency when it comes to sharing their story. However, the closest I believe we’re going to get to the truth is through Amy’s best friend, Tyler James, who wrote My Amy (2021) to set the record straight. Obviously, it’s easy to call any biography a cash grab. Slap a famous person’s name on it and someone will buy it, taking it as gospel—but this one feels different. It didn’t read like Tyler had anything to gain from it, though that could be my naive positivity talking. In my opinion, it felt like the most frank (excuse the pun) retelling of her life that I’ve encountered. He told it like it is, or like it was, and shared a soft side of Amy we don’t often encounter. This option might take you past the two-hour mark but it’s well worth the read.

4. Donate to The Amy Winehouse Foundation

Look, I acknowledge that donating can be tricky in the current economic climate (the cozzie livs, as the kids say). It’s definitely not a necessity. But if you were planning on buying a ticket to see Back to Black, plus popcorn and a drink—maybe even a choc-top, too—you might as well put that money to better use. Buy yourself a snack from a vending machine somewhere, pop in your AirPods and listen to some Amy—and if you feel so inclined, send even half the price of a movie ticket to this foundation, or another cause of your choice (may I suggest, thinking of Amy’s hopes of becoming a mother, donating to an effort helping pregnant women in Gaza). Not that I can speak for her, but I don’t think Amy would have wanted you wasting your money on this film.

5. Listen to Amy’s Music

I think this is the best way to celebrate Amy. 

If you’re a complete novice to her music, Back to Black (2006) is the obvious place to start. It’s her record-breaking, Grammy-winning, magnum opus. If you know Amy’s singles, take a trip back to my favourite, Frank (2003), which I would argue is a little more cheeky and playful in places whilst remaining typical Amy. If you’re already across her two major albums, have a listen to Lioness: Hidden Treasures (2011), where, as the title suggests, each song is an excavated golden nugget—the original version of “Wake Up Alone” is even more heartbreaking and her version of “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” is simply triumphant. She’s a once-in-a-lifetime artist who has most definitely inspired some of your favourites (Lana del Rey, Billie Eilish and Raye, to name a few). Have a watch of her music videos and revel in her lyricism, her humour and her talent.

There you have it: five things to do instead of watching Back to Black (2024)—though there are also a million other things to do. Ride a bike, bake some brownies, adopt a cat, egg a house, tell someone you love them—whatever you do, maybe think about listening to some Amy Winehouse while you do it. 

Oh, and if you’re wondering what my favourite Amy song is (at least, at the moment), it’s “Sent Me Flying.”