A Man Aside

The documentary Un hombre aparte rather mercilessly depicts the degeneration of a man who always had a firm belief in himself and, against better judgement, still has. The filmmakers do not spare the subject of their film. They even introduce an extra character to explicitly confront protagonist Ricardo Liaño with his loneliness, poverty and decline. But Liaño refuses to admit in front of the camera that his view of the world is distorted. Fanatically, he tries to launch the First Worldwide Antidrug Campaign for children from five to sixteen years old. He, the ‘Jack-of-all-trades and master of none’ type, Spanish immigrant in Chile of is still absolutely certain that he will become a millionaire for the third time in his life. ‘A millionaire in dollars! I’m still as juicy as a lemon, as an orange.’ From the beginning of the film, however, it is obvious that Ricardo should not expect much from life anymore. Because of his intolerable behaviour, he has alienated himself from everybody, including his own relatives. Not surprisingly, the man aside ends alone, sitting in the dark in front of the TV. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)