Director: Alexander Payne
There were several films last year that I liked more than Sideways. Few, however, have provided me with as much thought for weeks afterward, not about the usual elements, plot, directing, editing, but about the characters and about how they resemble (too much) people I know. Although advertised as a comedy, Sideways comes with teeth, and for many of us less than successful would-be actors/ writers/creative people, the bite is deep. For those that have not seen the film, there may be some mild spoilers ahead, so if this bothers you, then you might want to read the next paragraph and skip to the last one.
To begin with, Sideways, for those few that may not have seen it either on the screen or on video, is based on the novel (unread by me) of the same name by Rex Pickett. Jack (Thomas Haden Church) is getting married in a week. His old college friend Miles (Paul Giamatti, who was robbed of an Oscar) is determined to show his friend a good final week of bachelorhood consisting of good food, golf, and California wine. Miles is an expert on wine. Jack, a less than successful actor, has other ideas. He is determined to have one final fling before tying the proverbial knot. Jack’s strategy for appealing to women largely involves a combination of lies and flattery. Two women end up coming along on part of the week’s journey, divorcee waitress Maya (Virginia Madsen) and more lustful, single mother/winery worker Stephanie (Sandra Oh).
The story could have easily made Jack the villain and Miles the hero, but that would have been giving in too easily to convention. Despite his carefree sexuality, Jack does seem to love his bride-to-be. Jack also genuinely cares about Miles and has clearly acted the role of nursemaid many times. Miles, on the other hand, is not easy to like either. He is an almost perpetually negative snob, even stealing money from his aging mother. Both Jack and Miles are about forty and neither one wants to grow up. These characters are the most realistic and even-handedly played of any last year.
Miles loves wine. He is a so-so teacher, was a so-so husband, and appears to be, at least from a marketing standpoint, a so-so writer, but he is an expert on wine. Miles has written a novel, The Day After Yesterday. It is more than 750 pages long, largely based on his life, and no one wants to publish it. As the week starts, all of the major publishers have passed and only a relatively small company still seems interested. All of this has turned Miles into a somewhat bitter middle-age man. Jack, by contrast, is not bitter. In fact, he suffers from optimism so rosy that it has no bearing on the world he, or anyone else, lives in. Jack appeared in a soap opera ten years ago. Since then he has done commercials, first as an on screen actor and now only as a narrating voice over the pictures. He apparently doesn’t register this as a step down and believes that his big break is still just around the corner.
When I first saw Sideways back in November, the acting stood out and some of the jokes were amusing, but it seemed long to me. In fact, I wasn’t sure I liked the film. As the weeks went by, I found myself reflecting upon the characters. I knew them too well. I have friends, acquaintances, and associates that will be Jack and Miles in ten years. I see some of these characteristics in myself. I began to think my initial resistance to the film was because it hit too close to home, so I bought the DVD the day it came out and watched it again. Yep, these are characters I know. Nonetheless, some of my complaints with length are still valid. I had remembered at some point thinking that the film was over when in fact it was not. The second time through, I recalled where that was: Miles in the car after he just dropped off Jack. The camera stays on Miles’ look of unhappy realization. The camera holds and holds, and I think the credits will soon roll. After all, it is a similar shot to the Jack Nicholson breakdown which ended About Schmidt, Alexander Payne’s previous movie. To my disappointment the film continues.
What comes after is not so much bad as unnecessary and a bit too easy for characters that this film has tried so hard to not give traditional outs for. Miles gets a victory. Some would say after all that came before he needed at least one. I don’t agree. The film, and presumably the novel, should have ended with Miles in the car. All this last ten minutes did for me was to add length, to a film that was getting a bit long anyway (the total running time counting end credits is over two hours).
I have had wine only three times in my life, never been married, and certainly have never had to sneak into the house of a cuckold husband to retrieve a wallet left by my friend who had been committing adultery with the husband’s wife. Yet, Sideways felt true to my own life in feeling, if not in detail. Despite its faults, I highly recommend the film, but if these characters seem familiar to you, do not watch it by yourself. See it with friends, good friends. The film may question where they (or you) are going and where they (or you) have been.