This is a really great movie about how to get around the health system

There are more engrossing dramas than Dallas Buyers Club competing for Best Picture. More remarkably cinematic experiences, more innovative biopics and more visually stunning productions. But there isn't a more moving or timely true story among them, nor one that more poignantly and effectively deals with an issue still very much at the center of social and political debate today: in this case, the right of a terminal patient to control his or her own medical treatment, regardless of FDA approval. And with McConaughey and Leto turning in award-winning, vanity-shunning performances, the film is only that much more powerful. Universal's Blu-ray release is worthy of praise too, although we're once again treated to a much too short, much too forgettable EPK-driven supplemental package. Fortunately, video and audio are dead on, meaning the Best Picture nominee looks and sounds like the potential winner it is.

A movie about a man dying of AIDS could have been a bummer, but this movie is more about a man dealing with the fact he's sick and trying to do something about it, for himself and to help others. McConaughey more than deserved his Academy Award, as did Jared Leto. I was afraid the movie would be too preachy and heavy-handed, but for the most part DBC dealt with everything straight-on but without forcing the story or the emotions. How the movie handled his friends bailing on him was a bit clunky, I guess, but that's a small part of the story and does lead to some pretty good McConaughey scenes.

I really did not expect to enjoy this movie given its subject matter. The movie rails on the FDA which I don't think people are really that stupid or uncaring. I kept following the different plot twists, expecting the lead to end up in jail but it never really happens. It was an enjoyable movie and it carries a good message about people needing access to the drugs to fight something as deadly as the HIV virus and aids when it first came on the scene. The movie does a great job on the props and if you are from that era, you'll recognize a number of things. I know I did.

This is one of those movies that sickes with you long after viewing. It has a a deep impact on an important recurring issue and makes light on what people should care about. The acting alone here makes this film worth while. The blu ray has a really nice picture quality and sound wonderful on and HD TV. There are also a handful of great special features that show more of what the real Ron Woodruff was really like and the impact of AIDS. I highly recommend buying this, you won't be disappointed.