Sideways

For other uses, see Sideways (disambiguation).

Sideways
Theatrical Poster
Directed by	Alexander Payne
Written by	Story: Rex Pickett Screenplay: Alexander Payne Jim Taylor
Produced by	Michael London George Parra
Starring	Paul Giamatti Thomas Haden Church Virginia Madsen Sandra Oh
Cinematography	Phedon Papamichael
Edited by	Kevin Tent
Music by	Rolfe Kent
Distributed by	Fox Searchlight
Release dates	October 22, 2004
Running time	123 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$16,000,000
Box office	$109,502,303

Sideways is an American comedy-drama film written by Jim Taylor and directed by Alexander Payne. Adapted from Rex Pickett's 2004 novel, Sideways follows two fortysomething men, portrayed by Paul Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church, who take a week-long road trip to the wine country of Central California. Payne and Taylor won multiple awards for their screenplay; Giamatti and Church, as well as supporting actresses Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh, who played two local women who become romantically involved with the men, all received accolades for their performances in the film.

Plot

Miles Raymond (Giamatti) is a single divorcé, unpublished writer, eighth-grade English teacher, depression sufferer, and oenophile, who takes his soon-to-be-married actor friend and old roommate from his days in college at San Diego State University, Jack Lopate (Church), on a week-long road trip through Santa Ynez Valley wine country.

Miles wants to drink wine, eat great food, play golf, enjoy the scenery, and send Jack off in style. However, Jack is more interested in "sowing his wild oats" and having one last sexually libertine week. Soon after their arrival in wine country, they meet Maya (Virginia Madsen), a waitress at Miles' favorite restaurant, and Stephanie (Sandra Oh), a winery employee who happens to be friends with Maya.

Neither tells the women about Jack's impending nuptials the next weekend. Jack soon finds himself in a sexual and romantic imbroglio with Stephanie, which inevitably puts an abrupt end to Miles' plan for taking Jack out for a good time. Although more than a little reluctant, Miles is willing to entertain Jack's antics, convinced of the temporary nature of his newfound relationship with Stephanie, aware of Jack's childish nature and unhappily has to play the chaperone. Miles' decision to indulge Jack's philandering ways is also influenced by his decision, with Jack's strong encouragement, to begin to act on the crush he's developed on Maya. Soon, Jack's relationship with Stephanie accelerates, putting Miles in a precarious predicament as he continues to court Maya casually.

File:Sideways scrshot.jpg

Paul Giamatti as Miles and Thomas Haden Church as Jack

Eventually, Miles consummates his relationship with Maya. The next day, he lets slip the upcoming rehearsal dinner, which leads to his revelation of the upcoming wedding. An infuriated Maya, in turn, breaks the news to Stephanie, who becomes apoplectic and mercilessly attacks Jack, smashing his nose with her motorcycle helmet, which requires him to get medical treatment at a hospital. Miles and Jack later have a tense conversation where Miles flatly denies that he ever said anything about Jack's engagement to Maya.

Miles hopes that this is the end of Jack's behavior as they settle down to a barbecue dinner. Undaunted, Jack spots Cammi, a heavy-set waitress, who recognizes Jack and whom he dubs 'two tons of fun'. He goes home with her, leaving an irritated Miles once again to his own devices.

Back at the hotel, Miles is awakened in the middle of the night by a naked Jack, who confesses that a cuckolded husband arrived home from work and caught Jack in flagrante delicto with his wife, and he was forced to escape in the nude and run "five klicks" (3 miles) back to the motel.

A distraught Jack reveals that unfortunately, he left his wallet behind, which contained custom-designed wedding bands. He desperately wants to retrieve his belongings, but needs Miles' help. Initially, Miles laughs at the situation and refuses to help Jack, as he believes the incorrigible skirt-chaser may finally have learned a lesson. However, Miles sees the desperation in his friend's breakdown, and agrees to help him by driving him back to Cammi's house. After Jack pleads he's in no fit state, Miles reluctantly agrees to personally reclaim the wallet by sneaking into the garbage-strewn dwelling to retrieve it, passing by the Rubenesque couple, who are now engaged in sex themselves. He retrieves the wallet, but is spotted and is chased down the street by the enraged, portly, naked husband. Miles hops in his car and barely makes a clean getaway.

On the way back to Los Angeles, where the wedding is being held, Jack runs Miles' red Saab 900 convertible into a tree and then into a ditch, in order to have corroborating evidence for his story that a car accident mangled his face. The ploy works, much to Miles' chagrin. Jack's fiancee sympathizes with his injuries.

Miles' ex-wife Victoria is still friendly with Jack, and is at the wedding. During the road trip, Jack had revealed that Victoria remarried, but his romantic feelings for her are still strong. At the ceremony, Victoria introduces Miles to her new husband and also informs Miles that she is pregnant. Miles does his best to contain his deep sadness and congratulates her, but abruptly decides to skip the wedding reception and instead return to his small apartment in San Diego, where he fetches his prized bottle of wine, a 1961 Château Cheval Blanc, and drinks it from a polystyrene foam cup at a fast-food restaurant. Cheval Blanc is made from Cabernet Franc and Merlot grapes---two varietals which Miles disparages. This inconsistency with his love for Cheval Blanc is not explained.

It seems that this is the end for Miles, but Maya eventually returns his apologetic phone call. She has read his unpublished manuscript, and a letter of apology that he sent to her. Touched by his sentimental side, she leaves a message on his machine telling him that she cannot believe the book was turned down, as she admires it, but is also confounded by portions of it; in particular, the ending. Her message also discloses portions of his novel that, in turn, reveal events in Miles' life that may have shaped his bleak perspective on the world, particularly the implication that his father might have committed suicide (although this is unclear as, according to Miles, the novel is only loosely based on events in his own life). The film ends with Miles again driving north, standing on Maya's doorstep, and knocking on her door.

Cast

The Hitching Post II Restaurant in Buellton - where Miles and Jack first encounter Maya.

• Paul Giamatti as Miles
• Thomas Haden Church as Jack
• Virginia Madsen as Maya
• Sandra Oh as Stephanie
• Marylouise Burke as Miles's Mother
• Jessica Hecht as Victoria
• Missy Doty as Cammi
• M.C. Gainey as Cammi's Husband
• Alysia Reiner as Christine Erganian
• Shake Tukhmanyan as Mrs. Erganian
• Shaun Duke as Mike Erganian

Reception

Time Out London said the film was "intelligent, funny and moving," and the Chicago Sun-Times' Roger Ebert, giving the film four stars, said, "what happens during the seven days adds up to the best human comedy of the year -- comedy, because it is funny, and human, because it is surprisingly moving." The review aggregator Metacritic gives Sideways a Metascore of 94%, signifying "universal [critical] acclaim." Although, the user score, based on 428 user reviews, only gave the film a 6.2

A surprise hit, Sideways became popular in Hollywood, the US and internationally. Santa Ynez Valley, where much of the film is set, attracted increased tourism. The film was nominated for dozens of awards, winning many, and was dubbed "the best reviewed movie of 2004". With the exception of Giamatti, who had already starred in critically acclaimed films such as American Splendor, the film was a career breakthrough for the relatively unknown stars. Both Thomas Haden Church and Virginia Madsen were nominated for Oscars. Paul Giamatti has since been headlined as "The World's Best Character Actor" by Time Magazine. Giamatti was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Oscar for his performance in 2005's Cinderella Man. Sandra Oh, who has since broken up with the film's director, Alexander Payne, has gone on to star in Grey's Anatomy for which she won a Golden Globe and the Screen Actor's Guild (SAG) Award. Church went on to play a prominent role in the blockbuster Spider-Man 3.

Awards and nominations

Academy Awards:

• Best Adapted Screenplay (Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor)

BAFTA Awards:

• Adapted Screenplay (Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor)

Golden Globe Awards:

• Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
• Best Screenplay

• Nomination - Best Musical Score

Gotham Awards:

• Best Picture

National Board of Review of Motion Pictures:

• Top Ten Film of 2004
• Best Supporting Actor
• Best Adapted Screenplay

IFP Independent Spirit Awards:

• Best Male Lead
• Best Supporting Male
• Best Supporting Female
• Best Screenplay
• Best Director
• Best Feature (won in all categories it was nominated for).

New York Film Critics Circle Awards:

• Best Film

Screen Actors Guild Award:

• Best Ensemble (Paul Giamatti, Sandra Oh, Thomas Haden Church, and Virginia Madsen).

Nominations

Golden Globe Awards:

• Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical or Comedy (Paul Giamatti)
• Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role (Thomas Haden Church)
• Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role (Virginia Madsen)
• Best Original Score
• Best Director (Alexander Payne)

'Academy Awards:

• Best Picture
• Best Director (Alexander Payne)
• Best Supporting Actor (Thomas Haden Church)
• Best Supporting Actress (Virginia Madsen)

Soundtrack

Main article: Sideways (soundtrack)

Impact on wine industry

Throughout the film, Miles speaks fondly of the red wine varietal Pinot Noir. Following the film's U.S. release in October 2004, Merlot sales dropped 2% while Pinot Noir sales increased 16% in the Western United States. A similar trend occurred in British wine outlets. Sales of Merlot dropped after the film's release presumably due to Miles' disparaging remarks about the varietal in the film.

External links

• Sideways at IMDb.
• Sideways at AllMovie.
• Sideways review by Roger Ebert.
• The Danish Soul of That Town in Sideways.