***POSSIBLE SPOILERS*** "Sideways" is an all around excellent film and story- a funny, endearing, entertaining concoction of human exploration, reflection, development, confusion... brilliantly acted, written and richly perfected in almost every respect: it's an irresistibly and brilliantly clever piece of genius. Following a frustrated and agitated, yet unusually eloquent and erudite "wine expert" (Paul Giamatti) and his virtual opposite shallow, gregarious, and hollow best friend (Thomas Haden Church), as they venture the fascinating and gorgeous California countryside touring wine factories, meeting and romancing women (though the latter is engaged), and reflecting on the bemusements of life, and experience a week's adventure different than either had anticipated. The former is delighted (albeit hardly ecstatic) about the prospects of his novel becoming published, and this scheme provides the two friends with a reason to celebrate, and as Jack (Church) explicitly phrases it: party and get laid. Miles (Giamatti) is very conscious, yet subdued, exploding with ideas yet adrift about his own seemingly pathetic existence. At one point he exclaims, "I am nothing" proceeding a very unfortunate series of events, and believes he is a "smudge of excrement upon a skyscraper". For Miles, this is a journey of self-exploration, enlightenment, and realization: he is unhappily divorced and tepid about becoming romantically involved with any woman, even with a woman who seems to take a remarkable fancy to him, and is his compliment in the knowledge of wine and its ineffable, brilliant design, taste and spirit. His precarious (engaged) friend Jack, on the other hand, encounters a waitress on their trip (Sandra Oh), and professes his "dying love" to her after merely a day of rather unadulterated acquaintance, and hardly takes a moment to reflect upon his "love", to whom he is about to marry. This is a remarkably clever and carefully structured character study- of realizing the importance of existence and placement in the world, and of seizing opportunities and making the very best of life, even when overwhelming adversities hardly enable one to appreciate happiness, much less, their own existence. The direction is sometimes adroitly concentrative, and often fragmented, in scenes of drama, and pertains to the sometimes mellow and facile, sometimes serious and consequential themes achieved by various happy and depressing circumstances. The writing is absolutely brilliant and very human: it covers practically every human emotion with all the adulteration, honesty, pragmatism, wit and wisdom you might imagine. There are scenes of hilarity (Jack getting scarred by his angry girlfriend, Miles retrieving his wallet) and scenes of depth and reflection (Maya reflecting on the values of wine, Miles relating his miseries and hapless existence to Maya), and "Sideways" is an all around beautiful, enjoyable, endearing, and wholly entertaining work of human character as developed by circumstance, decision, and fate. We feel compassion and sorrow for Miles because we realize his troubles are hardly his faults, and that his kindness and wisdom should be received more fairly than his existence allows. Kudos to Alexander Payne for an absorbing and adulterated screenplay, Thomas Haden Church for his genial and hilarious comic relief in his role as Jack, and Paul Giamatti in his insightful and neurotic performance as Miles, in a film that is guaranteed to be remembered and appreciated at the coming of Oscar season. "Sideways" is a truly wonderful "slice of life" masterpiece. **** out of ****
Review of Sideways
