Outstanding.

Rating: 9/10 (18 February 2014)

Dallas Buyers Club is not normally the sort of film I would go to watch but given all the hype it had to be worth a look. I was hooked from the start. Matthew McConaughy gives a staggeringly good performance (losing that much weight - 47lbs! - must've been difficult) whilst Jared Leto steals the show as Rayon, the unlikely business partner that Ron ends up working with.
It is an extremely bitter-sweet movie, and describes the despair, hope and uncertainty surrounding mid-80s AIDS patients in detail but without shoving it down your throat. What is even more impressive is the way McConaughey shows the journey that Ron Woodroof takes, from abusive, blinkered rodeo redneck to tolerant, hard-nosed businessman with more than an eye for the medical laws of his country.
It's an absolute triumph in my eyes; however I feel that McConaughey & Leto will be sadly overlooked at the Oscars due to the bigger budget and more popular 12 Years A Slave. That's not to say 12 Years doesn't deserve it - they both do. But I just don't think that Dallas Buyers Club will get the awards I am certain it warrants.