Sideways (15)

I was a big fan of Sideways. I think the film may not be worth the over the top hype that preceded it, but it is a very enjoyable take on the road trip/buddy movie genre.

Paul Giamatti plays Miles, an English teacher who is suffering from the destruction of his marriage. His only hope is that his novel gets published and its up to his best frienc Jack, played by Thomas Hayden Church, to cheer him up on their wine tasting adventure. While Miles's life pretty much sucks, Jack is riding on the crest of a wave. Jack is a former soap opera actor, now resigned to doing voice over ads, who is finally ready to settle down. He is preparing to marry Christine, a beautiful younger woman from a wealthy background.

Miles and Jack, two forty-something best friends are heading South on Jack's stag week. Miles, as best man, has the week all planned out with some serious wine tasting on the agenda. Jack, however, has a few plans of his own, primarily chasing some tail and getting laid as he celebrates his last week of freedom.

The unlikely pairing of Jack and Miles is a a triumph for director Alexander Payne as the two pals go through some ups and downs, but eventually come out the other end all the better for it. The contrast of the characters makes for some fun movie moments, any humour you derive from Miles is pretty subtle - he is one of life's bums, he's been chewed up and spat out and Paul Giammati does a great job of portraying a guy who has nothing to live for. The majority of the laugh out loud moments come courtesy of Thomas Haden Church as Jack whose arsenal ranges from stellar one liners to slapstick style visual gags. As a pair they are great to watch.

I enjoyed this film, but am not sure its worth all of the plaudits that have been lauded its way. For me Haden Church steals the movie - virtually every scene he's in is a hoot. The movie itself though failed to really move me, and the funny moments are good but there could be more of them. The ending could also have been a bit more conclusive.

Overall though a hearty Hank thumbs up.

8/10.

If you disagree leave a comment. I relish a good debate.

Sideways was a film I was eager to see for a long time, having seen the advert in America. It is a well-constructed, very clever comedy with witty and at times slapstick comedy. The film starts with two middle-aged friends embarking on a last week of freedom journey. The trip is planned by Miles who is a depressed English teacher who is trying so hard to publish his book. He plans the trip for his best friend Jack, a succseful advert actor who is due to be married. The duo's road trip consists of wine tasting, sex and golf. They also meet 2 women, both fellow wine tasters. Jack goes straight for the sex with his new girlfriend, whilst Miles is more of a friend to his.

The film is a magnificent change to the normal mindless and violent blockbuster or your normal teen sex road trip movie. It is nominated for 5 Oscars including best picture but are the outsiders so no surprises if they walk away with nothing, although keep a loo out for best screenplay. To sum it all up, the film is brilliant and a must-see.

Sideways - This film, from writer/director Alexander Payne, the man who holds the same credits for About Schmidt and more importantly, the brilliant Election, is a wine tasting road-movie.

...

Yes. I know.

It stars Paul Giamatti, star of American Splendour, and many other films (he was the trader-monkey in the Planet of the Apes remake and the liar in Big Fat Liar) in the best role of his career to date. Funny and charming, his loser character is even more likeable than his in American Splendour. In yet another miscarriage of justice, he was not nominated for an Oscar this year, but his time WILL come.

He is brilliantly supported by Thomas Haden "OMG I can act!" Church, of Ned and Stacey fame, and Church does his best to steal as many scenes from him as possible, which has lead to his nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Also chipping in is Virginia Madsen, a star of the 1980s, she can expect her career to rise again after this Oscar nominated performance.

What happens? Well, no spoilers, but simply put, Miles and Jack (Giamatti and Church) travel up the Californian coast, with Miles taking Jack on a week-long wine-tasting vacation. Miles is a struggling writer/frustrated English teacher, Jack, an actor, is seven days away from getting married. Hijinks ensue. Need I say more?

This movie is brilliantly balanced and paced. There is no excess or pointless dialogue, and the pace varies from relaxed to mellow - it's never slow or boring, but it only has a few moments of action, all superbly filmed by Payne.

This film is a must-see for any and all moviegoers tired of seeing Michael Bay blow stuff up. It's a wakeup call to critics who think that U.S. filmmaking has stagnated, and it's a demonstration of how you can take a relatively standard story, add a quirk (wine culture) and great dialogue, and produce a truly standout film.