User reviews

I first saw this movie almost 20 years ago when I was in my early-mid twenties. I remember liking the movie, but not really connecting with the characters in a meaningful.

I just watched it again, almost 20 years later and it's like a totally different movie. I think you have to have real life experiences to really understand what the characters are going through.

The movie isn't really about "anything" in particular. It's just a couple guys going through things we all actually go through in life.

If you try watching it and don't really care for it, don't sweat it. Just let it breath for 20 years and come back. I guarantee it will have aged well.

I love movies like Sideways for many reasons. One may be that I will never see a commemorative Sideways bottle of wine or the Sideways happy meal at McDonald's. My point is that Sideways is a great movie and nothing more. It doesn't rely on blockbuster star power. It doesn't need flashy special effects or gimmicks. Paul Giammatti performs flawlessly as a flawed and deeply troubled character. I found myself forgetting he was acting. I only saw the character he was playing and became engrossed by his presence. Thomas Haden Church offers a very nice contrast by playing what appears to be a two-dimensional, sophomoric, womanizer. The story is simple and focuses more on character development. It is easy to connect with each of the main characters. They may not be likable but what they are is human. If you can't relate to them personally, they remind you of a family member or close friend. Overall, this film is for those who like movies based in reality, which as you will see can produce some of the most bizarre and comical situations of all. If you like movies with jokes you don't have to think about (Who doesn't from time to time) don't worry, this film has a surprisingly high amount of low brow, immature, vulgar humor, mixed with the dry and subtle. Give it a try. 9/10

What a refreshing adventure great writing really is. Through the mind, heart and soul of a filmmaker like Alexander Payne you can enter forbidden territory and dive into experiences that, at first glance, seem so far removed from our own. Little tales with enormous, universal implications. Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church and Virginia Madsen jump out of the screen and as soon as the movie ends we find them sitting next to us. We get home and find them waiting for us there, we even find them on the mirror looking back at us. This is the sort of movie going experience that will never get old. Its strength is in its truth. You may not like it, you may even resent it. Good, that's what art is all about. It provokes you. It motivates and inspires you. And as if all that wasn't enough, it entertains you it amuses you, it gives you one hell of a great time. I want another Payne soon in a theater near me.

Sideways is a beautiful portrait of mid life disappointment. The backdrop is lovely California wine country, and the casting is flawless. Every single performance in this film is surprising, pitch perfect, and unusual. The movie has the remarkable ability to capture sadness and desperation in just the light that allows the audience to recognize the humor. The ending is satisfying but not too pat. In short, this is the best film of 2004.

The standout performance in the film was Paul Giamatti's. I cannot believe he was passed over for an Oscar this year. He should have been nominated for American Splendor, and he definitely should have been nominated for Sideways. His performance was beautiful, romantic, heartbreaking and so human. Paul Giamatti, ignore the Academy! Every year they have less credibility. The people who know films and acting at all know that you are one in a handful of truly great actors working in Hollywood today.

My girlfriend is lucky enough to be on the Screen Actor Guild Awards nominating committee this year, so the promotional DVDs are flowing in, and SIDEWAYS is absolutely the best film we've seen so far. (Kinsey is a close second.) Paul Giamatti should get a nomination for this, and I want people on IMDb to start understanding that when you critique a film, it's not ALL about liking the character-- one IMDBer commenting on this film trashed Sideways because she thought the characters were morally bankrupt, and I challenge all of you to show me a good movie where the main characters aren't! That's how the necessary element of conflict is created in a story!

Can you really only enjoy films where the characters in them are people you'd have over for dinner? OPEN YOUR MINDS! Feature Films are not popularity contests, and as far as I'm concerned, neither are awards competitions. Giamatti steals cash from his mother's bedroom dresser drawer near the beginning of the film. Morally reprehensible? Absolutely! But my heart broke for him when he did it. You could see how much he hated himself in that moment!!! Giamatti's ability to have intensely personal thoughts flash through his eyes like flickering film through a projector, all the while maintaining such beautiful stillness, was for me breathtaking. Giamatti makes you completely suspend your disbelief...he makes you feel like you have ESP!!!

Thomas Hayden Church was hilarious as his ex-college roommate/infantile thirtysomething playboy buddy who can't let go of "his plight." He's a stitch. And I agree with everyone, Virgina Madsen makes you melt in this film. She is scrumptuous. Remember, IMDb moralists,...people who live in glass movie-houses, shouldn't throw popcorn! ~peace

... but aren't we all, regardless of our wine variety and tastes. Middle aged men make merry and melancholy in a film that makes you smile and yearn to go wine tasting in California.

For ninety percent of this film, I couldn't stand either of the major players. One is so self absorbed and pretentious, he made want to throw him out a window. The other has his mind in his pants and while much more likable, is about as vacuous as you can get. So I didn't like it, right? No. I watched it like I was watching a train wreck. These guys got more and more interesting as the film progressed. While I still didn't like them, we could see, especially in Giamatti's case, a person who is heading for redemption. The other has a future full of uncertainty (or is it certainty?) How these guys could be friends is the interesting thing, but they develop a hands off rapport and it seems realistic. There are some wonderfully comic scenes and some real heartbreak. And you know, we've all been there at times. The performances are excellent and once all the hijinks are over, we really buy into these guys.

Sideways is a pretty, poignant, genial tale of two longtime college buddies who embark on a week long tour of wineries and golfing before one of them (Thomas Haden Church) succumbs to the shackles of marriage.

Whatever your taste in buddy movies is, you'll probably find something you like in Sideways, which mixes the effete elitism of wine-lovers with the frat-boy antics of philanderers in wickedly seamless fashion.

Miles (Paul Giamatti) wants to give Jack (Church) a good send off before he joins his betrothed in holy matrimony at the end of the week. Miles, an avid - some would say sneeringly snotty - oenophile, comes up with the nifty idea of the two of them driving up the coast of California touring various wineries and vineyards and such. That way Miles can show off his knowledge and Jack can have a one last good, free time.

One small problem. Although Miles is perfectly content to wine and whine for the week, Jack's eye wanders - and soon he's setting up a double dinner date with a winery employee (Sandra Oh) and a waitress (Virginia Madsen). Suddenly the trip's not about the two friends bonding one last time, it's more about Jack sowing his wild oats (figuratively, hopefully) while he still can. This change in plans leads to awkward, funny, and funny-awkward moments; meanwhile, poor Miles - recovering from a divorce (and finding out secondhand that his ex-wife has just remarried) and waiting to hear if his latest literary opus will be accepted for publication - is a walking rubber band ball of neuroses and nerves. He tries to maintain the trip's focus, while Jack just tries to have a little fun.

As with most buddy films, Things That Go Wrong tend to snowball into something far greater, and on one level Sideways is a typical road trip movie, including assumptions, lies, illogical decisions, red herrings, and so forth - all in the name of low comedy. But on another level, the movie is an honest look at love and relationships from the perspective of a single, closing-in-on-middle-age male.

Even though Giamatti and Church were hardly unknown actors before Sideways, this is truly the breakthrough film for each. Giamatti, a veteran character actor perhaps best known for his role as Pig Vomit in the screen version of Howard Stern's Private Parts, is perfectly in his element as the self-obsessed, nervous, sincere Miles. It's a performance to which many people can instantly relate; Miles is not handsome, he's not smooth, he's not really all that charming, but somehow he's still appealing. He's a good guy who tries to do well and sometimes suffers the whims of Lady Luck. Church is known for two TV series he was in, "Wings" and "Ned & Stacey," and I can't recall his ever being classified as a good actor, just an entertaining one. But he's wonderful as the rowdy, randy, perpetually horny Jack; he seems to give the role an extra layer of depth. You can't just write Jack off as a selfish bastard, just as you can't just write Miles off as a dork.

Director Alexander Payne, who made the clever Election, does a fantastic job at transforming what's really a two-character study (everyone else, including the two female leads, is background to the relationship between Miles and Jack) into a realistic, fully textured movie. Payne's screenplay doesn't dwell on caricatures and doesn't offer pat explanations or resolutions. Sometimes, the film tells us, things don't end up good or bad. They just continue on.

Although Giamatti and Church are at center stage, Oh and Madsen are both fantastic, although perhaps slightly underused. In particular, Madsen (who earned an Oscar nomination, as did Church), makes the most of her brief screen time, oozing intelligence, wit, charm, and sexuality from every pore.

Sideways doesn't move too slowly and isn't too talky, and because wine is one theme, there are plenty of beautifully photographed scenes of the lovely Napa Valley's vineyards. Sideways is thoughtful, entertaining, and fascinating.

Greetings again from the darkness. Writer/Director Alexander Payne was the creative force behind one of my favorite films from the past couple of years with "About Schmidt". With "Sideways" he proves his insight into human nature was no fluke, but instead, an amazing gift. He captures many Hollywood stereotypes such as mid-life crisis, groom-to-be cold feet, post-divorce confidence crunch and the overall desire to be loved, or at least liked. What makes Payne's work so unique is his ability to deliver multiple messages, with brilliant comic twists, using little more than unlikeable lead characters and sizzling dialogue! Moral bankruptcy is at a peak in "Sideways" as one of our leads (the magnificent Paul Giamatti from "American Splendor" and "Man on the Moon") steals cash from his mother and the other (Thomas Haden Church from TV's "Wings") is on a mission to have his bachelor party last an entire week while claiming we just don't understand his plight. Also delivering a wonderful touch to the film is Sandra Oh (Diane Lane's pregnant buddy in "Under the Tuscan Sun"). Oh has very unique looks and mannerisms, but is terrific as one of Church's conquests. The soul and spirit of this film belongs to the drastically underrated Virginia Madsen (if you have never seen "The Hot Spot", make it priority viewing). Madsen (sister to cult favorite Michael Madsen of "Kill Bill" and "Reservoir Dogs" fame) literally jumps off the screen with her eyes and smile. Her character wants so much for a better life, but is strong enough to avoid her past mistakes. She is the one we root for. This is an excellent film and nice character study with a snappy jazz score. Payne has proved he should be considered among the best filmmakers of today - now could someone please help his film obtain better distribution!!!

I don't get what all the fuss was about. This film had a decent story, but nothing that would make me want to see it again. The acting was OK, but I didn't see anything that makes it outstanding. It does have some funny moments, mainly involving Jack and his women. How could you not laugh when he decides to pick up the porkly waitress. And then when Miles goes back to her house while she and her husband are "involved".

But since Jack was such a pig, it really makes me not like this that much. I can't hope that someone who wants to cheat on his fiancé right before the wedding finds good times. Nor do I like the fact that Miles agrees to help him cheat and keep his secret. Plus, Miles was a lush who just feels sorry for himself. He lives in misery, not moving on unlike his ex.

Also, since I don't know anything about wine, I didn't find that plot part interesting. I really don't care about wine tasting and what makes a good wine.

FINAL VERDICT: At least the plot makes sense and isn't filled with holes. I just didn't find the subject matter and wine tasting that entertaining.

Alexander Payne is becoming a magnet for me. I wait for his films. He is an eminently American director that can look in with the incisive eye of an incisive foreigner. Besides all that, he is a poet. In "Election" he gives us an electro shock disguised as a Teen College Comedy. I laughed in horror at the cleverness of the storytelling. In "About Schmid" he forces us to look into one of the darkest corners of our society and find ourselves there. And he does it in the funniest most entertaining way. In "Sideways" he trusts his audience enough to put impossible hurdles for us to love his characters -- Paul Giamatti and his mother's money, for instance -- and yet, we have to admit he's made his point. We are all people. He manages to surprise us with our own capacity for compassion. Vittorio De Sica, Billy Wilder and Mario Monicelli come to mind. Yes Mr. Payne you are the ticket!

While the theater in Yuma last week had only 15 people in a 125 seat house the movie and the "crowd" was rather quiet during the 1st hour while the 2nd hour provided more interaction and a few laughs.

I am a 2nd generation Californian and have toured many a winery but I just don't see how or why everyone seems to "love" this movie. The story just takes too long to get to a point that you want to empathize or relate to either character. In the end I was hoping for Miles to find happiness and Jack to stop being "Jack." However upon leaving the movie I just felt like it was just middle aged men (especially Jack) behaving badly.

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.

A woman's take on this is probably not the same as a man's. Initially I was put off by Charles Hayden's Church's character crudeness and Giamatti's character's repulsiveness but that changed was I was able to look below the surface. By the end of the movie, I felt very sorry for Church as he was not only dumb and shallow, he was actually so empty that whatever female was before him became a mirror of his need to connect with anything that felt like caring. Church did a fabulous job and was incredibly believable as a has-been wannabe, desperate to hold on to his dream of the kind of good life that is bought by charm and good looks. He is just on the edge or realizing his time is running out and that is a whole lot for this character to absorb as he has never given much to the concept of "thought."

Giammeti is a pitiful, self-absorbed, destructive, depressed alcoholic whose in possession of two "things." He knows a great deal about wine and he has written a book. Nothing else informs him. Yet his performance is so nuanced that we are able to fill in his depth of character and decency primarily through his huge, limpid eyes. What a performance. He should have been nominated for an academy award. This is a role that comes along once-in-a-lifetime for this type of character actor, like Liza in Cabaret.

The women are really nothing more than backdrops or props for the men to expose themselves. Madsen is lovely but you do wonder what on earth she really sees in this man. While he may be redeemable, he is really pretty much a self-absorbed jerk. It is most interesting that this film has been released at the same time as Closer, as they are similar in their exploration of self-absorption. Though Closer explores how destructive its characters are to each other, in the end, Closer is not as intimate and seems more artificial than the sweetly revealing Sideways.

From Alexander Payne comes an outstanding and impeccably performed film, that is poignant, deeply funny, tragic and truthful, with some consistent moments of wit as well. Sideways also gets my pick as the best film of 2004, and there were a few strong films that year, however it was this film that touched me the most.

For one thing, it looks beautiful. The cinematography is stunning and the scenery is wonderfully picturesque. The music is lovely, while the direction is faultless. I also loved how engaging the story was, and how fresh it was as well, while the script is both moving and funny. As far as I could see, there were no pacing problems, it may start slow, but the quality of everything else left me transfixed.

The acting is absolutely astonishing. Paul Giamatti is brilliant as Miles, a teacher full of nervous self-loathing, while Thomas Haden Church is excellent as Jack, a deliciously deadpan sort of character who provides the laughs. Miles is the more likable character of the two I agree as you feel genuinely for him, while Virginia Madsen's character is the most likable in the film, and speaking of Virginia Madsen she was delightful in this film.

Overall, an outstanding film, nothing wrong with it as far as I could see. 10/10 Bethany Cox

I saw Sideways for the first time almost 20 years ago and immediately hated it. It not only made me want to walk out of the cinema but throw popcorn as well. Now, in my 40's, I realize that this movie in for a selected audience, mainly, people who understand, or think they understand wine. On the surface, we are introduced to a cast of characters who are unrelatable that believe their own crap. Living a lie one way or another. After a second viewing, and having lived an extra 20 years, more relatable topics come to the surface. However, the lack of cinematic direction, a slow / weak opening and characters, whether you have a connection to them or not, are not likeable for the most part. Sideways, like a bottle of wine, ages well with its audience. To those who can note relate, its a dull road trip for a reason. Such is life, the story can be bleak, miserable, and yes awkward for reasons good and bad. I wonder of my rating of this film will be better in another twenty years.

Alright, so I've already aired my complaints about this monstrously overrated movie on another post, so I won't do it again. However, there's one thing I wanted to point out. One of the major threads holding the film together is the friendship between Miles and Jack. Am I the only one who realizes that their relationship is completely unbelievable? First of all, the two of them have nothing in common, other than the fact that they're both totally self-absorbed and annoying. But that aside, let's say they still somehow were good friends, OK. There's still a problem. In his final week of bachelorhood, Jack's master plan is simply to "get laid" one last time before he's married. He makes it abundantly clear to Miles that all he's really interested in is having sex that week. So then, why in the world would he decide to go on a weeklong tour of WINE COUNTRY with his pessimistic, annoying, snobby alcoholic of a friend??? If he's trying to get girls, he would have to realize that having a loser like Miles around will do nothing but harm his chances at that. But there they are, the two "pals" out for an "exciting getaway," traveling from winery to winery, "living life to the fullest". You've got to be kidding me, it's totally ridiculous, and really quite a stupid plot when you think about it. Even the dialogue between the two of them was moronic. Really simple and boring. But that's what the entire film was, simple and boring. And UNBELIEVABLY OVERRATED.

I had known of Sideways for a long time now. Being the huge film fan that I am, I remember always seeing it get mentioned in many message boards, or websites, or critics' best-of-the-decade lists. It wasn't until now that I saw it, and the reason is because I recently saw Payne's new film The Descendants and I fell in love with it. It wasn't just his simple writing, but his direction, the feel that he gave it. Sideways was another gem, and an even better one.

This could be called a dramedy in many ways, a comedy/drama. There are many films these days getting released that could be labeled in those two genres, and yet Sideways makes it look easier than The Descendants even. What we have here is a brilliant script all around, fully fleshing out these characters. And the investment I had with Giamatti... enormous. I was on this ride with him, I felt his pain, his anger, his awkwardness when confronted with aggravating or tense situations. I found myself telling him things on the screen, and even staying at the edge of my seat in a funny situation he is put in by his friend near the end. Whereas The Descendants lived on it's script through a lot of quiet moments, Sideways blends in simple, subtle moments with really incredible dialogue. The dialogue between the two was the main difference, and yet Sideways is very much of the feeling one is put in.

I want to say the ensemble cast is fantastic. Church really made me question just how much of a friend he was, and yet still made him completely sympathetic and be able to be understood. As for Virginia Madsen... I felt like I was also falling for her like the lead. Some of her scenes, especially the conversations between her and Giammatti, she plays incredibly. She makes you feel the likability of her character, and yet also feel the sensuality and the vulnerability that she is pushing through with her shared desire. She was fantastic. Giamatti is fantastic as the disappointing lead, and although he always seems to play these sort of characters, he knows what to do to make them completely work.

Overall, extremely satisfied with this, and still here is the unique touch of real feeling for the characters that I witnessed in the Descendants. How could I not love this? Payne's film pushes through the screen what can only be described as an incredibly real connection, a connection that I honestly don't witness very often with comedies.

Everyone has been raving about SIDEWAYS. I have seen the word "hilarious" attached to this film. I rather expected that something which is classified as an adventure, comedy, drama would at least make me smile. I remember this movie thoroughly and looking back it's not a disappointment because it does involve you in real characters with real flaws and average problems. However, it is NOT a comedy in the traditional sense. Certain recent comedies try so hard to be funny that they include scenes that are ghastly and embarrassing; nowadays that passes as humor. This film has no jokes, barely approaches any slapstick or other physical humor. Usually you could only laugh if you are sadistic, but the film is engaging, and I found myself rooting for the protagonists. It's NOT light amusement. It's certainly not "Hilarious". (And thank heavens they deleted the scenes about the dog from the final cut or I could not recommend the film to anyone. Why were those ever created?)

First five stars of the year! What a film.

I'm beginning to check out Payne's work before the theatrical release of The Holdovers in my country. I was excited for this, but it didn't grab me in the first ten minutes. It started to grow on me, really slowly, and everything changed with that beautiful dialogue on the outdoor couch between Miles and Maya about wine, a tremendous metaphorical work through which Payne narrates, describes, explains Miles's whole life and his current love, work, existential situation; exposition done brilliantly, romantically, poetically. The film keeps on producing and giving these really simple moments of sheer life in its good and especially bad moments, through a superficially comedic dynamic, a friendly contrast between the two men. I also feel a gigantic appreciation and wonder for the main man, Miles, that comes from the amazing, truthful and authentic performance by Giamatti, one of the best I've seen in a while. He portrays the character beautifully and so innocently, one of the main factors that make this film great. It is a simple story told simply without any excess. A life I resonate with - a story of failure, missed courage, depression, fear, hopelessness, that slowly gains consciousness and conscience to then become strength, resilience, adventure, with an ending that reopens the games after the umpteenth let-down, an ending that can sum up the whole essence of the film.