Sideways

I'm usually leery of Best Pictures. The Academy doesn't have the greatest sense of what actually constitutes a good (much less "best") picture. Ever since I watched "Out Of Africa" and spent 2 1/2 hours wanting to swallow the clorox, I've taken the "best" appellation with the proverbial salt grain.

So. I took it as a good sign that "Sideways" did not win the oscar. It did appear on most critic's "top ten" lists, which may or may not mean anything. Still, the nomination(s) did raise some expectations of quality -- which were ultimately and amply rewarded.

Movies like this are not nearly so much about the plot (such as it is) as they are about the people, and the performances, and the corners and alleys of life. Movies like this are what keep true movie lovers returning to the theatre, even when that means wading through a Vin Diesel glut. In "Sideways", Jack is getting married, and his best friend/best man Miles decides, as a wedding gift, to take Jack on a weeklong road trip. To Miles, this trip will be about treating Jack, about introducing him to the peculiarly satisfying world of wine-tasting, about re-strengthening their pure bond of friendship. To Jack, this trip will be about one last single fling, about embracing his inner caveman, about getting laid.

The performances in "Sideways" are fine and funny and felicitous. Thomas Haden Church exudes macho comfort as Jack. He's quirky and believable, and although his character is not as sharply drawn as Miles, he is nuanced and interesting. Although Jack is pretty much an unrepentant rogue, you can't help but identify with his growing frustration at the way Miles continually turns his back on life, on risk, on anything more social than sticking his nose deeply into a wine glass.

Miles, as brilliantly portrayed, by Paul Giamatti, is layered and deep, full of tics and fears and unsalved pain from his two-year-old divorce. He meets (and falls for) Maya, but can't seem to reconcile his feelings for her with his need to wallow in loneliness.

At one point, Maya asks him why he likes Pinot so much, and in a bravura piece of acting he delivers a brilliantly conceived monologue:
"I don’t know. It’s a hard grape to grow. As you know. It’s thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It’s not a survivor like Cabernet that can grow anywhere and thrive even when neglected. Pinot needs constant care and attention and in fact can only grow in specific little tucked-away corners of the world. And only the most patient and nurturing growers can do it really, can tap into Pinot’s most fragile, delicate qualities. Only when someone has taken the time to truly understand its potential can Pinot be coaxed into its fullest expression."

Maya, for her part, describes why she likes wine:
"I do like to think about the life of wine, how it’s a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing, how the sun was shining that summer or if it rained... what the weather was like. I think about all those people who tended and picked the grapes, and if it’s an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I love how wine continues to evolve, how every time I open a bottle it's going to taste different than if I had opened it on any other day. Because a bottle of wine is actually alive -- it’s constantly evolving and gaining complexity. That is, until it peaks -- like your ‘61 -- and begins its steady, inevitable decline."

It's clear that both these characters have just described themselves, in a paroxysm of self-awareness that is both sweet and sad. Unlike "The Weather Man" (to be reviewed shortly), the script doesn't bash us with its Deep Meaning. Instead, like wine itself, this movie is a living thing, that grows within us as we savor it's nuance. It's most definitely not f'ing merlot.

"Sideways" is about self-realization, about loving the person who also makes you crazy, about knowing when to feed the flame and when to let it gutter and die. "Sideways" is subtle and funny and flat-out wonderful.