Have you ever heard a song that had some well-written lyrics but the tune and melody just weren't very appealing? That's how I think of this movie. There isn't much appealing about the main characters although the story itself is kind of interesting. After watching this and The Aviator, both of which are Best Picture nominees, I am starting to see how the Academy is becoming more and more dominated by politics and how the nominees are not always the most deserving.

Paul Giamatti stars as a divorcee on his way over to pick up a friend (Thomas Haden Church) to spend a week tasting wines before Church gets married. Giamatti is a wine connoisseur and Church is just a wine drinker. Watching this film will educate you on the many different styles of wine and how to properly taste and smell them. I might have to go buy a bottle of tonight after having seen this.

Church's character is a complete horndog, despite his pending marriage. His entire goal for the trip is to bed at least one last woman before getting married. All Giamatti wants to do is have a relaxing week drinking wine and playing golf. When the two meet a pair of women, matters are further complicated as Church thinks he falls in love with one girl while Giamatti has to play along with the whole lie. As soon as all that gets started, you know it will only be a matter of time before it all falls apart.

I cannot stand to see people cheat on their spouses and so it is impossible for me to sympathize with characters that do such a thing. I was hoping for a better resolution than what happens in this film, so the ending was disappointing for me. Giamatti's character does go through some interesting development as he slowly gets over his depression from the divorce, but it takes so long to get there that I sort of lost interest in him since Church's character is so dominant. In short, there wasn't much appeal in this movie for me, except for maybe the educational parts about the wine.

If anything good is to come from Sideways, it is Thomas Haden Church's breakout performance that has earned him an Academy Award nomination. I can't believe this is the same guy who played the bumbling mechanic on the show Wings. Church's character might be a big a-hole, but his acting was excellent and I expect to see him appear in a lot more movies. Paul Giamatti is great in this film, but I think the reason why he was passed over for a Best Actor nomination is because he has played this type of pitiful character before. Virginia Madsen, who was also nominated for her role, was good but her character didn't have all that much screen time. Frankly, I don’t see why she was nominated.

Alexander Payne's direction is very tight and I really liked the way he kept the story moving along. Almost every scene ends with an excellent line of dialogue and I kept noticing one beautifully framed shot after another. His choices of music kept a lighthearted feel through most of it and some wonderfully timed comic relief is spread all throughout the movie. This easily could have been a heavily weighted down drama but instead it came off as a lighthearted dramedy. I've heard Sideways referred to as a hilarious comedy, but it is far more dramatic than comedic, sort of like Rain Man.

Sideways is about two grown men who are desperately in need of some help. One of them sees some redemption and the other didn't get what I thought he truly deserved. I was disappointed with the ending, especially with how one of the minor characters was just thrown away. Best Picture for 2004? I surely hope not.


Recommended: No