Dallas Buyers Club

Number 3 on my countdown through the list of films nominated for various awards at the 86th Academy Awards (Oscars)

Released: 1st of November 2013

Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner, Jared Leto

Rating: 8/10

Dallas Buyers Club is based on a true story about a man in 1985 Texas who contracts AIDs and how he deals with it. Rather than resigning himself to the certain death that awaits him, he rebels against the drug they’re testing to ‘cure’ the virus and smuggles an abundance of prescription drugs in to sell to others suffering with the same affliction. To outwit the law, he sells memberships to the ‘Dallas Buyers Club’ and gives the medications away for free.

Matthew McConaughey is brilliant in this and not only because he lost 40 pounds (3.5 stone) for the role and has an extensive list of swear words at his disposal. He captures the essence of the main character Ron and really shows the audience what it’s like to be terminally ill. The denial, the anger and then the ultimate emotional core of it all – accepting his fate. Whilst this film is definitely more of a one man show, Jared Leto is unrecognizable as transvestite Rayon who meets Ron in the hospital and is also battling AIDs. Jennifer Garner is also great as Eve, a doctor who works on trialing the new AIDs drug AZT.

Although this film may sound depressing, it is actually rather uplifting, with a few funny lines and a fight against the illness rather than a dreary, weepy ‘this is the end’ drama.

With regards to their nominations, this should certainly win a few Oscars. But Best Actor? I think that is still reserved for Leo who is awesome in Wolf of Wall Street and has, astoundingly, never won an Oscar before.