Movie: Dallas Buyers Club
Director: Jean-Marc Vallee
Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner, Dennis O’Hare, Steve Zahn
Rating: ****
What happens when a young and busy life is halted? What happens when misfortune kisses in prime youth? Melancholy, mostly; hope, rarely. Dallas Buyers Club thus stands as a stellar example of hope shone bright.
It’s 1985. Ron Woodroof, an electrician and a hustler lives a carefree life-high on drugs and women until he is diagnosed with AIDS. He has only “thirty” days as per the doctors in a Dallas hospital. That’s when his world topples and he lives in a state of denial. The hospital in Dallas promotes AZT, a drug on a clinical trial.
As Ron is busy researching more about AIDs and the drug AZT, he realizes that AZT harms the system and shortens the life. In his pursuit, he meets “Dr.” Vass whose license was revoked by the US and he is busy working underground at Mexico. Soon, Ron befriends Dr. Vass who gives him a cocktail of pills that helps him feel better. Dr. Vass also shares proven research that AZT is harmful.
Ostracized by his friends and family, Ron Woodroof is on a mission to find a medical drug to prolong his life. In his journey he also meets a transgender woman Rayon affected with AIDs and is one of the guinea pigs for the AZT clinical trial.
He pulls her into his endeavor to sell life elongating drugs and together, they begin supplying their medicine to the ones affected with AIDS. Thus, the Dallas Buyers Club is born.
Mathew McConaughey lives the role of Ron Woodroof. You wouldn’t recognize him unless you know about the movie earlier. He has lived his part—as an AIDS patient or a hustler. Ron’s persuasion and determination reflects in him too.
Jared Leto’s demeanor plays a close semblance to the transgender women. Rayon’s sensitivity makes one fall in love with her. Rayon is not a part of Ron’s life and is only introduced in the film. But it doesn’t seem and her life seems to intersperse with Ron’s mission.
“Dr.” Vass played by Griffin, Dr. Eve played by Jennifer Garner, Dr. Sevard played by Dennis O’Hare fit well at various points in the film.
Tightly packed, the film helps one understand why Dallas Buyers Club was important in the 80s when AIDS was still considered a taboo in the US. The movement started by Ron to make provide better medication for AIDs has been captured truly in the film barring a few loopholes where HIV virus was mentioned in the film and it has been proved that HIV wasn’t used by the medical fraternity at that time.
This film deserves to be watched for the struggle of Ron and let the reason not be: two deserving Oscar awards for Mathew McConaughey and Jared Leto.
Review by Nivedita N