Critics Slam New Amy Winehouse Biopic “Back to Black”

First reactions to Back to Black , the new Amy Winehouse biopic starring Marisa Abela, are rolling in, and they are not positive.

The film has landed a rotten rating of 52% on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics calling it " a terrible film " and " salacious and cruel ".

Skepticism was rife when the trailer first landed, and it seems the final product isn't much better.

Back to Black comes from Fifty Shades of Grey director Sam Taylor-Johnson, depicting the life and music of the singer-songwriter behind one of the best-selling albums of our time as she journeys through adolescence and into adulthood.

Find out below what early reviews are saying ahead of the film's May 17 release.

Review Roundup

• indieWire : Everyone involved in the film approaches the late artist with love and respect, but its tawdry instincts and misguided sense of responsibility let her memory down.

• TheWrap : Tells the story of Amy Winehouse but shows no passion in telling it and has nothing to say about the events that transpire. It's the utter minimum of what a biopic can be.

• Screen International : Offers a pallid account of Winehouse's story, ironing out some thornier issues, and bringing little that's new, either in fresh revelations or distinctive angles on the familiar.

• London Evening Standard : The final scene, in particular, with its completely and utterly baseless, sensationalist implications, made me physically gasp in horror.

• Digital Spy : Despite the efforts of Marisa Abela in a challenging role, it's hard to know exactly who Back to Black ends up being for.