“Dallas Buyers Club” is loaded with quality work, but it’s Matthew McConaughey’s performance that elevates those elements to solidify the film as an exceptional experience.
Inspired by true events, “Dallas Buyers Club” features Matthew McConaughey as Ron Woodroof, a freewheeling Texan working as an electrician and rodeo cowboy until he’s diagnosed as H.I.V. positive and informed that he’s got just 30 days to live. Stubborn and determined, Ron defies his doctors’ assessments and looks into treatment options of his own. After discovering there are effective alternatives and that the only thing keeping them from the ailing is US medication regulations, Ron takes it upon himself to bring them into the country and then distribute them through a “buyers club.”
“Dallas Buyers Club” has two powerhouse components that unite to deliver explosive results – the subject matter and Matthew McConaughey. Even though the tragic effects of HIV and AIDS are very familiar, Ron offers a rousing and disturbing fresh perspective. Not only is the process of awarding a drug government approval disconcerting, but so are certain motivations involved, as they make better options inaccessible. Whether HIV/AIDS has hit close to home or not, it’s a widely relatable, nightmarish scenario. But what really lets “Dallas Buyers Club” dig especially deep is the fact that this issue is then honed down and humanized by a wildly successful main character.
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It’s always a challenge to accurately portray a particular character. The actor must appease the expectations of the director, the writer and the producers. Yes, he or she must also gain the approval of the audience, but that’s after the fact. In the case of a period piece, the actor must think beyond the filmmakers and consider the approval of any administrations involved, having the character resonate with unfamiliar foreign audiences and, most importantly, having an in depth knowledge of who this figure really was in every facet.
I tend to avoid costume period dramas. I find them tiresome to the point that British English sounds more like Chinese than the dialectic most similar to American English. It goes in one ear and out the other as my mind dissolves into oblivion. The same thing happens to you? I’m not surprised considering the rotten reception this genre of film typically gets in the U.S. But I implore you, rethink your preconceived notions and give The Young Victoria a chance. Yes, it’s talky and stately, but it has a degree of humanization making it far more enjoyable and relatable than others of its kind.