This movie is based on the true story of Ron Woodroof who was diagnosed with AIDS in 1985 (or 1986 depending on where you look). In the movie, he lived in Texas as an electrician and was a partaker in bull-riding at rodeos. He was a womanizer and homophobic bigot. When he was diagnosed with HIV, he went through all the classic steps of grief starting with denial.
Matthew McConaughey received his first Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Ron. I fully admit that I haven't watched all the movies he has been in and pretty much have only seen him in shallow, comedic roles. I was not overwhelmed with his performance this time, but I was overwhelmed with how gaunt he became to depict Ron.
Jared Leto on the other hand, took over every scene he was in portraying the transsexual, Rayon. His character provided an education to Ron's bigoted attitude, humor during tragic circumstances and heart overall. If he doesn't win the supporting actor Oscar, it will be a HUGE shock.
Steve Zahn in a small role actually showed more range as an actor than Matthew McConaughey.
Jennifer Garner is a good actress who didn't seem comfortable working with Matthew yet still did an admirable job in her role as a doctor handcuffed between hospital bureaucracy and the oath of caring for patients.
The attitude about AIDS in the 80's was accurate and was reminiscent of the book Tell The Wolves I'm Home (which I recommend) but I digress.
I give this a one strong thumb up mainly for Jared Leto but feel like it should have been more.
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1 comment:
I enjoyed reading your Blog Roxanne - you are a good writer. This was a tough movie to watch but I thnk Matt did a great job and so did the other actor (whose name I just forgot). I never heard Ron's story but felt it was an important story to tell. Another good book about the whole AIDS story (up to finding the nasty retro virus) is "Beyond Love" by Dominique Lapierre.
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