REVIEW: ‘A Man of Action’ Invites You to Embrace Anarchy

I’m somewhat ashamed to admit that up until watching A Man of Action I had a very distorted view of what an anarchist was. I had always equated anarchy and chaos as one and the same, and perhaps that stems from the upbringing that taught me to live within the framework, and how to adapt to be able to not only survive but to thrive. But for Lucio Urtubia, this was not his path, as he sought to overthrow the corporations and banks around him and reallocate their wealth to the people of France. Let’s dive into the Netflix film that documents the real life of an anarchist looking to make a difference.

Directed by Javier Ruiz Caldera, the film is loosely inspired by the life of Lucio Urtubia (Juan José Ballesta) a Spanish exile living in France looking for a new life during the 1960s. After landing a job, he falls in with a local crowd who sees the potential in Lucio and his personal ideals and recruits him into the anarchist association. After stealing from a bank, he quickly becomes infatuated with the prospect of anarchism spreading throughout the world. But, he realizes, for that to happen then their organization must find a way to disrupt the foundation of the wealthy.

The definition of anarchism from Merriam-Webster states, “a political theory holding all forms of governmental authority to be unnecessary and undesirable and advocating a society based on voluntary cooperation and free association of individuals and groups.” This is the very foundation for the entire film and Lucio’s driving motivation. The expositional narrative does a decent job of introducing you to the concept pretty early on, as well as spotlighting a few of the founding members of the group and some of the quotes attributed to them.

As the film begins, you learn that Lucio was born and raised in Spain, which at the time, and sometime after that as well, was a fascist country ruled by a dictator. By its very definition, fascism doesn’t allow for opposition of any kind, and the movement is built on outright control. As a young idealistic and angry man running from his homeland, it’s not hard to conceive how Lucio fell so deeply in love with the idea of a utopia that was built on the foundation of equality, community, and voluntary cooperation. It’s liberty above all.

The construct of the film is so alluring, with the perspective focused on the underdog bricklayer who seeks to take on the soulless elite and the bourgeoisie who’ve gotten fat off of the labor of others. It feels very in the spirit of Ocean’s Eleven as it captures that same ingenuity to pull off something so elaborate. However, where the film loses pace is the inconsistency of quality in the dialogue and the lack of depth in the acting itself. There are moments that stand out as good, but this topic is a powerful one with such a relatable message.

With a stronger script and a better delivery, these moments could have been immense. The dialogue falls very flat in certain scenes and then in others, it deals with such large-scale themes that should stimulate and rouse the audience. The acting itself elicited very few stirring moments in which I felt moved by the portrayals.

A Man of Action isn’t a film that will necessarily be for everyone, but it’s certainly worth a shot. Worst case, you enjoy a story in which you can root for the little guy with mediocre acting and scripting. And perhaps you’ll see the potential for what could have been a fantastic film. I enjoyed what Caldera delivered all in all, and I feel better knowing more about the loosely inspired life of Lucio Urtubia.

A Man of Action will be available exclusively on Netflix Wednesday, November 30th.