Dallas Buyer's Club Review

There are two certainties in life, death and taxes; but you can avoid paying taxes, you can't exactly avoid death. During the 1980's, HIV and AIDS were running rampant and they were death sentences. At the time we knew very little about the disease, and we had pretty much no idea how to treat it. During the late 80's we started to make some breakthroughs on how to "stall" the disease. We didn't have the cure but we found ways to prolong a patient’s life. But for some reason the Food and Drug Administration was not approving these drugs for one reason or another, even though they had been proven to help. But they just kept pushing their own medicine that would actually do more harm than good. Fortunately, there were a few brave souls out there that were doing what the FDA wouldn't. Dallas Buyers Club takes place in Dallas, Texas and starts off in 1985; Ron Woodrof is a homophobic, drug addicted party boy working for an oil company. After an incident on the job he is rushed to the hospital where the Doctor discover he has full blown AIDS and an estimated 30 something days to live. At first Ron doesn't believe it, thinking that only gay people can get the disease. But after learning how HIV and AIDS actually works he recalls having sex with a hooker who had track marks running down her arm, implying that she had the disease from extended drug use. Ron goes to his doctor pleading for AZT, the only licensed dug believed to treat the disease. After taking the drug for a couple weeks, he isn't feeling any better and is referred to a doctor down in Mexico. He explains to Ron AZT doesn't help and starts giving him drugs that aren't legally available in the US. Over the next few months he feels much better and gets the idea to start selling these drugs to, targeting members of the LGTB community. He decides to partner up with Rayon, a transgender woman with more ties to the community. Together they set up the Dallas Buyers Club, an organization selling memberships to anyone who needs drugs that have been proven to fight AIDS but aren't legal in the US. But with the FDA breathing down there necks, Ron and the club members are always on their toes; fortunately Ron refuses to go down without a fight and save hundreds of lives in the process. This is an all around good movie, but if there's one thing that people are going to remember it's the acting. The writing and humor were good for the most part and there are some pretty emotional scenes, but if you're going to watch this movie you're going to watch it for its acting. Matthew McConaughey as Ron and Jared Leto as Rayon give the best performances of the year. Both transform into the characters and really show their dedication. Both lost so much weight for these role it's kind of scary. McConaughey lost like 40 pounds to get into character, he's almost unrecognizable; the same thing with Leto. It's pretty safe to assume that both are going to be nominated for Oscars, and in my opinion they should win. Jennifer Garner also co-stars in the movie and she does great, one of the best performances of her career. I wouldn't be surprised if she was nominated for best supporting actress. Unfortunately like most the movie has its problems; the movie feels a little too long by the end of it, but at the same time the ending feels somewhat rushed. One thing that bothered me throughout is that there are some strange editing choices. There are several cuts that happen suddenly and seem out of place, as well as too many "fade to black" transitions that just seem lazy. Probably the biggest complaint you'll hear from most is that at time the screenplay doesn't live up to the rest of the movie. While there are some emotional moments, the movie lacks that certain touch that really makes you feel. Dallas Buyer's club is a great movie, and we will be seeing it at the Oscar's. It tells the story of a man who fought the system and saved an untold number of lives. If we had more people like that this world would be a better place. As of writing this review it's only in limited release but if it is playing near you it's certainly worth the watch. 

Pros: Oscar worthy performances from Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, often quite funny, some very emotional moments.

Cons: Strange editing, a little long, feels rushed at the end, screenplay doesn't always match the rest of the film.

4/5 Stars