Sideways (2004)

Two men reaching middle age with not much to show but disappointment embark on a week-long road trip through California's wine country, just as one is about to take a trip down the aisle.

Director:

Alexander Payne

Writers:

Rex Pickett (novel), Alexander Payne (screenplay)

Stars:

Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen

Won 1 Oscar. Another 122 wins & 87 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Paul Giamatti	...	Miles
Thomas Haden Church	...	Jack
Virginia Madsen	...	Maya
Sandra Oh	...	Stephanie
Marylouise Burke	...	Miles's Mother
Jessica Hecht	...	Victoria
Missy Doty	...	Cammi
M.C. Gainey	...	Cammi's Husband
Alysia Reiner	...	Christine Erganian
Shake Tukhmanyan	...	Mrs. Erganian (as Shaké Toukhmanian)
Shaun Duke	...	Mike Erganian (as Duke Moosekian)
Robert Covarrubias	...	Miles's Building Manager
Patrick Gallagher	...	Gary the Bartender
Stephanie Faracy	...	Stephanie's Mother
Joe Marinelli	...	Frass Canyon Pourer

Storyline

A week before his friend Jack is to be married, best man Miles and the prospective groom head off to wine country for a week of fun, relaxation and - of course - wine drinking. Miles is the oenophile and does his best to teach Jack a bit about the art of appreciating great wine. All Jack cares about is drinking and carousing, something he accomplishes when he meets the attractive Stephanie at one of the vineyards. Miles is something of a sad sack, a high school English teacher who is a failed writer at heart. He has yet to get over the fact that his wife has divorced him and that she has remarried and he now faces that nerve racking wait for word from a prospective publisher. Miles has an opportunity to start anew when he meets Stephanie's friend Maya but when he let's slip that Jack is about to be married any hope of a relationship seems to be lost.

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Plot Keywords:

wine | vineyard | middle age | wine tasting | deception | 

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Taglines:

In search of wine. In search of women. In search of themselves.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some strong sexual content and nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Fox [Spain] Fox Searchlight

Country:

USA Hungary

Language:

English Armenian

Release Date:

21 January 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Entre copas

Filming Locations:

1785 South Broadway, Santa Maria, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$207,042, 24 October 2004, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$71,503,593

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$109,706,931

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Searchlight Pictures,Michael London Productions,Sideways Productions Inc.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Erganian house is located directly opposite O.J. Simpson's famous N. Rockingham home at the time of the murder of his ex-wife and Ron Goldman.

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Goofs

While Miles makes his protest of Cabernet Franc and Merlot well known, the bottle of 61 Cheval Blanc is from Bordeaux, a blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot. This is entirely logical: Merlot from California is widely considered to be inferior; Cabernet Franc is a grape used primarily in blending. On their own, both wines are well less than stellar. Cheval Blanc is indeed a Bordeaux blend of Cab Franc and Merlot (and a few other grapes), but in their Bordeaux incarnations their grapes produce an excellent red wine. Indeed many Bordeaux producers use the two grapes in their Bordeaux blends; the California incarnations of the two grapes are just not all that great. Miles' sentiment is shared by many wine lovers around the world - even those from central California.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Miles Raymond: Fuck.

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Crazy Credits

Editorial Cat - Lulu

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Connections

Referenced in No Strings Attached (2011)

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Soundtracks

FADED AWAY
Written by Jamie Dunlap, Lisa Furr, and Scott Nickoley
Performed by Lisa Furr
Courtesy of Marc Ferrari/Mastersource

User Reviews

Keeping Everything Bottled Up.

Sad, disillusioned and depressed middle school teacher/aspiring novelist Paul Giamatti takes his best friend (Thomas Haden Church) to California's wine country for one last week of freedom before he marries. Church is on the prowl though and extremely horny as he wants nothing more than to sleep with women before his wedding. Thus these two opposites (who are more alike than they appear on first glance) have all sorts of adventures and misadventures. They meet two women (Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh) and immediately take an interest in them. Divorcée Giamatti is shyly attracted to Madsen while Church falls in lust real quick with Oh. What is going to transpire over this week? Outstanding direction by Alexander Payne (who is one of the better "new-age" film-makers) knows which comedic and dramatic buttons to push here. His screenplay (which he co-wrote with cohort Jim Taylor) is deeper than it appears on the surface. Just like "Election" and "About Schmidt", "Sideways" works because the characters are quirky and hilarious, but also vulnerable and real. The four leads are remarkable with Church stealing the show and Madsen doing the work of her life. Giamatti's quiet and heartfelt role makes you sympathize and care for this flawed man. An intelligent adult-themed comedy/drama that works from many angles. 4.5 out of 5 stars.