Dallas Buyers Club is a film that not only takes an unlikely hero and makes audiences respect him but it also stars two actors who seem to melt into their characters and give us performances (and a story) that audiences can rally behind.

After a work-related accident lands him in the hospital, Ron Woodroof (Matthew McConaughey) learns that he has AIDS. When the medicine he takes for treatment proves inefficient, he travels to Mexico where he learns about medical drugs—not approved by the FDA—that help those suffering from the virus. Smuggling the drugs back and forth from Mexico and other foreign countries, Woodroof—with help from Rayon (Jared Leto)—creates the Dallas Buyers Club to aid all of those ailing from the same disease.

For everyone who has seriously questioned (or outright doubted) McConaughey’s talents (given his romantic-comedy infested filmography), ‘Dallas Buyers Club’ will leave them in silence and in complete shock. His character, Woodroof, is a homophobic rodeo cowboy whose drug and sex addiction lead to his being diagnosed with AIDS. With his prejudices and various vices, he’s unafraid to voice his opinion, he has a strong will to live and, although it is also slightly motivated by money and being isolated by his friends—he realizes that the same people he hates will meet the same end if nothing is done. McConaughey doesn’t hold anything back in this very strong performance as a man with nothing to lose and a great deal to gain. In a few scenes where his character breaks down and, despite his character’s attributes, McConaughey demands empathy.

While McConaughey owns his role, Leto transforms into Rayon, a transgendered woman who Woodroof meets in the hospital and eventually becomes Woodroof’s business partner. Leto doesn’t just draw you in, but the actor is completely forgotten and we are simply watching a real person walk unashamed across our screen and insist, tease, and charm his way into convincing us to pay him full attention and gradually rid Woodroof of his intolerance.

The editing and structure of ‘Dallas Buyers Club’, although formulaic and familiar, works for this film. Adding to perhaps the best way to tell this story is the actual footage interwoven into scenes with our actors to remind audiences that this film is an account of a real man’s story and success with the Dallas Buyers Club. We, like Woodroof in the film, are plunged into history lessons and facts based on research concerning the disease, the FDA and their rules and regulations, the pharmaceutical industry, and AIDS patients’ struggles with acquiring effective treatment. Screenwriters Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack school audiences without taking them out of the movie completely. It is done in a very subtle way and only adds great depth to this story. On top of telling another’s story and taking away messages about the will to survive and ethics, especially concerning the medical field, it is refreshing to also take back a little bit of our history with us too.

At times, the shaky camera is a slight overkill. While it is understandable why Director Jean-Marc Vallee may have wanted to add a bit more realism to the story, this was unnecessary as the cuts to actual footage and allusions made this effect possible.

‘Dallas Buyers Club’ is a film worthy of seeing in theaters for its outstanding performances, its life lessons, its sensitivity to the victims of the subject matter, and its stirring content.

Jim’s Rating: 8.75/10