Look at this Photograph. Every time I do it makes me laugh. This is Ty and I acting like Animals at the Nickelback concert last year in Montreal. We figured they would Burn it to the Ground, but I don’t think we were ready for just how much fun we would have! I hope that Someday you get the chance to see them live and even if you’re too Far Away from Ty and I to see it together, there’s Gotta Be Somebody that will go with you. We’re not here to talk about the concert though, instead we’re talking about Hate to Love: Nickelback, a documentary that offers a glimpse into the Rockstar life of the band. The documentary takes an interesting approach and talks about how much hate the band received despite their overwhelming success. It really is Too Bad because Ty and I have always tried to understand the haters, and if you’re reading this and are one of them, we’ve never quite Figured You Out. “Why do people spend so much effort Trying Not To Love You?” we’ve often wondered. But what this documentary proves is that When We Stand Together as Nickelback fans, we can drown out the hate.
Ty and I went and saw the movie This Afternoon here in Montreal and we’re ready to tell you if this documentary will Lullaby you to sleep or if you’ll be back for the Next Go Round.
My Thoughts
Alright, now we’ve gotta get down to business. We’re only giving you a brief break from the song name puns, though, because they’re coming back in the verdict section!
Overall, this was a fun little documentary. Obviously Ty and I are fans of the band, but there was still a lot here to be learned in this movie. The documentary takes time to really focus on every member of the band, including some earlier members that aren’t part of it anymore. Learning more about the origins of Nickelback in Hanna, Alberta Canada was super interesting too, especially as Canadians. Love or hate them, Nickelback is definitely a Canadian success story.
As far as a focus goes, this was very much a documentary that the band was clearly happy to participate in and I think as a result it might not touch on some things in as much detail as some would expect if it was more of an “outside” view of the band. Without giving anything specific away, the documentary acknowledges the party lifestyle from lead singer Chad Kroeger but avoids any crazy stories that might’ve come out of living that life. Any Avril Lavigne fans will be disappointed to know that she is not actually mentioned in any real detail or even by name, except for a few headlines that appear on screen. I do think it would be fair to call this sanitized, but I didn’t feel like it was altering the truth of things either. This very much felt like Nickelback telling their story in their way.
This also is a good time to talk about the title and the theme of the whole thing. It’s been a popular thing in my lifetime to hate on Nickelback and I’m not afraid to admit that I was one of those hypocrites who would say out loud about how lame they are and then blast their music into my ears on my MP3 player back in the day. If I could knock this documentary for one thing, I wish they actually spent more time addressing this phenomenon than they did because it’s part of what makes Nickelback, and their story, so unique. While achieving some of the best commercial success in the history of music, they were also one of the most memed and dunked on bands in history.
I’m no musician and I’m one of the least qualified people in the world to talk about what is “good” music, so I won’t do that here. What I will say though is that there should be nothing wrong with just enjoying something that makes you feel good. I won’t name the person, but on a road trip I was on in the last few years, my brother and I queued up a few Nickelback songs and our travelling companion immediately started with the lines about Nickelback being lame and what not. Not two songs later that same person was singing at the top of their lungs with us as we laughed and formed a fun core memory. And that right there is why I love Nickelback. Their music is just so goddamn catchy and fun and it just begs you to sing along with it.
Hate to Love: Nickelback is a nice little look into the human elements of a band that, even to me as a fan, felt like more of a thing than a group of human beings with their own challenges and lives.
Verdict
Overall, this was a fun look into a band that has been inescapable on the airwaves throughout the 21st century. Ty and I both liked this movie, but you don’t need to rush out to see it as If Today Was Your Last Day on earth. What the movie makes clear though is that If Everyone Cared about having a good time as much as they did about being a hater, there wouldn’t be anyone left to hate on Nickelback. If I’m ever in a bad mood and you’re wondering about Savin’ Me from myself, playing some Nickelback is How You Remind Me of what happiness is all about. If you do want to see the movie though and you can’t find someone to watch it with, I’d Come For You because as long as us Nickelback fans have each other, we’re Never Gonna Be Alone.
If you haven’t seen Hate to Love: Nickelback yet, What Are You Waiting For? Head over to the concession stand to get Something in Your Mouth and if after watching it you still don’t love this band, well then you’d be my vote for the Next Contestant to go on a one way trip to San Quentin.
Adriana Wiszniewska