Review: 'Dallas Buyers Club' Starring Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto

It wasn't too long ago that a "brave" performance by Matthew McConaughey meant not taking his shirt off and flashing his abs for a swooning audience of female fans. Now as his career transitions into one of utmost legitimacy, he does what no major Hollywood star has done since Tom Hanks won the Oscar for Philadelphia more than a decade ago, and that's play an AIDS victim. And much like Hanks, McConaughey gives a transformative, confident performance that could send him to the Academy Awards stage.

As scrawny, shady Texas cowpoke Ron Woodruff it's McConaughey's swagger and southern charm that shines through more than his good looks in Dallas Buyers Club, a film about the early days of the AIDS epidemic that (thankfully) isn't like all of those other films about the AIDS epidemic. The true story of Woodruff is a fascinating one that sees him go from a homophobic, coke-snorting, hard-drinking lowlife into a figure of hope to many who were suffering from the disease. But there are no grand epiphanies to be found; no heartfelt soul-bearing speeches that paint Woodruff as an easily likable champion for the afflicted.

It's a title that wouldn't have suited Woodruff anyway. Based on his true story, the film begins with Woodruff engaged in sweaty anonymous sex, a time-filler between drinks at the bar, scoring some drugs, or his latest hustle. He sees himself as the ultimate man's man, ten-gallon hat permanently atop his head and a cigarette always at the ready. It's 1986 and Rock Hudson has just died of AIDS, but the real tragedy is all the women the actor could have nailed. Such a shame. But there's a problem that Woodruff doesn't want to acknowledge; he's been getting sick. He looks like a bag of bones and is coughing up blood when he isn't fainting altogether. A random work accident sends him to the hospital where he gets a life-changing diagnosis: HIV. And he's only given a few weeks to live.

"There ain't nothing out there that can kill Ron Woodruff in 30 days," he says defiantly to his doctors, including the concerned Dr. Eve Saks (Jennifer Garner) who takes to the gruff cowboy despite his dismissal of her diagnosis. The film begins counting the days, not just to Woodruff's death but until he finally comes to accept the situation he's in. After failing to get in on the AZT medical trials, and not having the money to buy the expensive drug cocktail himself, Woodruff does the unexpected and starts hitting the books. What he discovers is a big ol' roadblock of FDA bureaucracy and dirty deals to make legal AIDS drugs practically unobtainable to those who need them most. As one would expect from a dying con man, Woodruff does whatever it takes to profit from a bad situation. Of course a guy like him would end up in Mexico buying illegal AZT from an unlicensed doctor. Of course a guy like him would smuggle it back across the border and set up the "Dallas Buyers Club", earning a profit by selling access to the drugs outside of FDA regulations. What's surprising is where this scheme takes him, both literally and figuratively.

A barely recognizable Jared Leto steals every scene as Rayon, a transvestite Woodruff meets and forms what begins as only a professional relationship. Rayon lures in more clients, and Woodruff reaps the profits. But over time we see that the kind-hearted Rayon begins to break down those walls of uber-hetero machismo Woodruff has built up, leading to a meaningful friendship that flies in the face of everything Woodruff has ever known. As his quest to beat the odds (and make some cash) takes him places he never imagined, such as Japan, Germany, and even Israel, Woodruff begins to win sympathizers to his cause. Not the least of which is Dr. Saks, who comes to challenge the red tape that is costing many AIDS patients a legitimate shot to survive.

Written without a shred of melodrama and directed with economical precision by Jean-Marc Vallee, Dallas Buyers Club gets its point across without becoming just another message film. He doesn't dwell too much on the fine details of the era, yet you recognize in the many supporting characters the fearful atmosphere permeating the country as AIDS grew into an epidemic. While there's a great deal of medical jargon to wade through, it's balanced nicely by sensitive and humorous character moments. This isn't a crowd-pleaser in the truest sense because, frankly, we know Woodruff's story won't end well. That doesn't diminish in the least the fight and courage he displays, which is nothing less than uplifting. Vallee's a solid director but in his efforts to remain minimal he occasionally underplays a scene's emotional value, such as in the final shot which comes practically out of nowhere and lacks the intended impact.

Despite the heavy subject matter, Dallas Buyers Club is an entertaining, unsentimental character study that everyone will want to take a dose of.