The Anarchists

As Episode 1 of "The Anarchists" (2022 release; 6 episodes of about 50-55 min each) opens, we are on a beach somewhere and a book burning event is taking place at night, involving even small kids. We then are introduced to some guy named Jeff Berwick, who decides that he wants to live in anarchy (literal meaning: "un-rule"), and by golly, wouldn't Acapulco, Mexico be a great place for that? We then go the "Anarchapulco 2015", the initial festival/gathering for those interested in the movement. At this point we are 10 min into Episode 1.

Couple of comments: this series is directed and executive produced by Todd Schramke, who seems to have been embedded in Acapulco for long stretches over a period of years. Let me admit upfront that I have never heard of Berwick or this "movement" until now. Having seen the first episode, it only raises more questions than it answers: most of these people are kooks, pure and simple. There's never a conspiracy theory that they don't like ("the federal reserves secretly rule the world!"). Then there is this: how do these people support themselves? None seem to have a job. Third: where are the Mexican authorities in all this?

Episode 1 premiered this past Sunday on HBO and then streams on HBO Max, where I caught it. New episodes air Sunday evenings at 10 pm. If you love a good documentary or are interested is understanding how far down the rabbit hole some people will go to find the "truth", I'd readily suggest that you check this out, and draw your own conclusion. I can't wait to see how all of this is going to play out.

*UPDATE 7/27/22* I've now seen 3 episodes, and this is getting weirder and more fascinating viewing as it goes on. Just wild. Highly recommended.

*UPDATE 8/18/22* I've now seen all 6 episodes, and I really enjoyed the entire mini-series, that is until the very conclusion of the 6th and last episode, which kinds just ends, like in the middle of a sentence. Then the closing credits started rolling, and I felt really let down that director Schramke didn't post an update what became of the main players in this real-life drama. Absolutely unacceptable. I was ready to upgrade my original rating of 7/10 to 8/10 but because of the way the series wrapped up, I am leaving it at 7/10.

Good God - What a train wreck of humanity. This is a compelling documentary - but compelling in the way that one cannot tear oneself away from viewing the scene of a horrible accident. It's a well-done setup, but unfortunately for the filmmakers, the subjects of this documentary are so unlikeable, so cluelessly self-absorbed, and so irredeemably stupid that there is little enlightenment on offer and even less sympathy to give. Anarchists? Hardly - just a motley crew of drug dealers, fakes, frauds, charlatans, and other assorted liars, scammers, and narcissistic idiots. Anarchy as a way of life may already be nothing but a pipe dream for the hopelessly clueless, but if this cast of drug-addled imbeciles, hippies, and meth-heads, and the crypto scammers for whom they serve as useful idiots are any indication, that pipe dream is further away from reality than ever. So kudos to the filmmakers for the effort, but ultimately, one is left not asking, "Who did it?" but rather "Who cares?"

So many reviewers seem to think we're supposed to admire the subjects of this documentary. Their hubris, naïveté and bag of rocks dumbness combined with the truly dangerous nature of Acapulco for people who don't even speak the language let alone have street smarts tells me that we will eventually see what happens when the idealism of rich people mistaking privilege and hedonism for freedom meets a truly lawless system.

It's a slow build but I am confident it's going somewhere.

This is a good doc. A lot of these reviews seem biased against anarchism in general and exhibit a failure to understand the point of a documentary. For example: you don't have to like the people in a documentary. Some excellent documentaries are about extremely horrible people. This is worth watching. I learned some stuff.

It's funny how people who are leaving reviews are angry about the people in this show. The name of the show makes it sound more extreme then it really is. It's basically about libertarianism and or expats. It about people who want more freedom and less government involvement, or who want to leave their country. This show is very current about todays society. Tonnes of Canadians and Americans have moved to mexico over the last few years for a new lifestyle. Well see what happens in the next episodes.