Review of Dallas Buyers Club (2013) by Bill E — 22 Oct 2014

There's the movie made and the movie not made. Over at the New York Times, A. O. Scott alerts us to the movie not made by director Jean-Marc Vallee, a movie about the real fight to stay alive and the solidarity and spirit of the gay community in response to AIDS.

That would be a good and potentially provocative movie (to some audiences). However, we need to consider the movie made instead wherein a homophobic and redneck straight man becomes an angel of sorts for those suffering from HIV/AIDS by investigating and then illegally importing experimental drugs that the FDA was slow in approving.

That man (the real life Ron Woodroof) is played by Matthew McConaughey, transformed by a 50 pound weight loss into a gaunt sick man. Jared Leto plays his transgender business partner. As you know, both won Oscars.

If there can be a feel-good movie about AIDS, then perhaps this is it. Shot on an extremely low budget, it doesn't show and instead manages to maintain a spirited vibrancy, sense of humour, and righteousness, even though it isn't the movie not made.