If you thought Matthew McConaughey was skinny in "Mud"

Rating: 8/10 (19 November 2013)

These past two years have seen Matthew McConaughey go from B-list comedic actor, to arguably one of the top ten dramatic actors working today. And undoubtedly an Oscar nomination awaits McConaughey for this performance.
My extremely long synopsis: In the mid 80's, coinciding with the emergence of the drug AZT, a stereotypical homophobic Texas redneck named Ron Woodroof is informed by doctors that he is HIV positive and has thirty days to live. However, when he discovers that AZT does much more harm than good and the drugs that seem to be helping people are essentially illegal, he goes to Mexico for treatment. And upon discovering there is profit to be made off of the sale of non-FDA approved drugs that actually work, he decides to smuggle in the drugs and go head to head with Big Pharma by starting the Dallas Buyers Club (with the help of a homosexual cross-dresser played by Jared Leto) a club which provides its members (AIDS patients) with alternative medicine. There is also a pseudo-love story subplot concerning Ron and a doctor, played by Jennifer Garner, but it doesn't add anything to the story, so who cares.
Another aspect which adds little to the success of this film is the direction from Jean-Marc Vallee. Yet I don't count on many other critics making that statement in their reviews since McConaughey's physical transformation as well as his performance is such a welcome distraction, that it takes pressure off everyone else in this production.
Problems do arise when, on more than a few occasions, the script sets up a lighter comedic atmosphere than appropriate, considering the subject matter. That said, when Leto's character is introduced into the story (around 40 minutes in) even though he does play the comic relief of sorts, "Dallas Buyers Club" seems to become less about the comedy and wit and more about the dramatic entertainment. Furthermore, while critics will be going gaga over McConaughey's performance (as they should) Leto's great supporting performance demands to be recognized. Why he doesn't focus solely on acting and give up on that horrible band of his, is beyond me.
Side Note: Yes, "Dallas Buyers Club" is entertaining, touching and even powerful at times, but with the story's focus being what it is, this is a movie that will still come under understandable scrutiny for one reason in particular: Much like "The Help", the hero of "Dallas Buyers Club" is an outsider. What I mean by that is, in some people's eyes "The Dallas Buyers Club" will be nothing more than a movie about a homophobic cowboy with a heart of gold, who must come to the rescue of the poor, helpless homosexuals. And sadly because the plot and characters aren't really that layered, this criticism is unavoidable even though the movie itself may work.
Final Thought: Overall, "Dallas Buyers Club" is a four star film, with a couple of five star performances.