HOT DOCS 26 Review - Antidiva: The Carole Pope Confessions

 

 

    

Growing up in the Greater Toronto Area throughout the start of the twenty-first century, it was almost impossible to come of age without hearing at least the slightest whisper around Carole Pope, a figure who still lights up classic rock radio wavelengths to this day. Antidiva: The Carole Pope Confessions opened the 33rd edition of the Hot Docs Film Festival, and the room was filled with endless energy and applause— before, after, and during the film. Within mere minutes of runtime, Michelle Mama reawakens a massive moment in Canadian pop culture and proceeds to not only juxtapose it with the modern culture of music around Toronto (and beyond), but also simultaneously recontextualize its meaning within the current landscape; the documentary rigorously explores the question: “How did Carole Pope get everything started, and where is Carole Pope today?”
 

Featuring a barrage of recognizable and distinctly Canadian names and appearances, such as Sebastian Bach, George Stroumboulopoulos, Peaches, and K.D Lang, Antidiva keeps the volume cranked to eleven throughout the length of its incredibly tight 88-minute runtime. Long-time fans of Pope will be pleased to hear that there is ample footage from Rough Trade live shows and classic music videos, like “High School Confidential.” The film even opens up with a collection of celebrities reciting and finding immense joy within the opening verse of that very song. In fact, the opening montage was the best way to kick this piece off, as it captures the mood and sets the tone perfectly; it dives, almost immediately, into the genre-defining/defying musicianship and courage that was (and still is) Carole Pope and the work of Rough Trade. 
 

With non-stop energy and thorough amounts of empathy and compassion for the people involved, Antidiva stands out as something of a paradox within the contemporary market of musical documentaries. Not only does it grab you by the collar and refuse to let go for the full hour-and-a-half stretch, refusing to let anything that could be considered a ‘dull moment’ take up a single second of the frame, but Mama’s obvious and everpouring love for Carole Pope and the eternal work she and Rough Trade have done for self-expression, identity, and community across North America, absolutely makes the film.

Antidiva: The Carole Pope Confessions is screening Sunday, April 26th, 1:30pm at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema.