The father of Amy Winehouse has threatened legal action against the makers of the new feature-length documentary about the life and death of the singer, who died of alcohol poisoning in 2011.

Mitch Winehouse, her father, is not happy about how he is depicted in 'Amy' and has threatened to sue the makers for libel or slander.

'Amy', which was directed by Asif Kapadia,  is due to be released in UK and Irish cinemas in July.

Mitch also denounced the film's inclusion of Amy's husband Blake Civil-Fielder, who allegedly blamed Amy's addiction problems on her father. He told The Sun: "Blake is saying in the film that the reason Amy was like that was because of me — not because he gave her crack and heroin and because he completely manipulated and coerced her into Class A drugs. If the real truth came out about Blake, he wouldn't be able to walk down the street so how they can allow him to make that claim about me is so hurtful and beyond belief.

We can't stop it but when the film does come out we can sue for libel or slander. Our lawyers will view the film and reserve the right to do that and see whether there are any grounds."

The family released an official statement yesterday that distanced itself from the film. It read: "[The Winehouse Family] feel that the film is a missed opportunity to celebrate her life and talent and that it is both misleading and contains some basic untruths. There are specific allegations made against family and management that are unfounded and unbalanced. The narrative is formed by the testimony of a narrow sample of Amy’s associates, many of whom had nothing to do with her in the last years of her life. Counter views expressed to the filmmakers did not make the final cut.

Fundamentally, the Winehouse family believes that the film does a disservice to individuals and families suffering from the complicated affliction of addiction. By misunderstanding the condition and its treatment, the film suggests for instance that not enough was done for Amy, that her family and management pushed her into performing or did not do enough to help her. In reality, the filmmakers were told of a huge effort from all concerned to help Amy at all stages of her illness and their constant presence in her life throughout, as well as that of many excellent medical professionals.

Amy was an adult who could never be told what she could and could not do. Through their work with the Amy Winehouse Foundation, Amy’s family have met many others enduring through the same struggle that they endured and have helped hundreds of disadvantaged young people in Amy’s name. They will continue to do so and hope their work creates more understanding of a terrible illness."

A spokesman for the filmmakers told People Magazine that they had "approached the project with total objectivity".

"We conducted in the region of 100 interviews with people that knew Amy," he said. "The story that the film tells is a reflection of our findings from these interviews."

Watch the trailer for 'Amy' below: