Miles Raymond, the wine connossuier at the heart of
Thanks to Jack’s boyish charms (and here I’m really using “boyish” as a synonym for “obnoxious”), Miles and Jack end up pairing off with two locals: Miles with the stunning Maya (
| Sideways (2004) | |
| Grade: A | |
| Directed By: | Alexander Payne |
|---|---|
| Written By: | Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor Based on the novel by Rex Pickett |
| Starring: | Paul Giamatti Thomas Haden Church Virginia Madsen Sandra Oh |
| Studio: | Fox Searchlight |
| Other Links: | Official Site |
Giamatti’s performance as Miles was easily one of the best acting jobs of the year–how he didn’t receive an Oscar nomination for his performance is completely beyond me. All I can think of is that Giamatti, normally known as a classic example of “That Guy” from any number of films, doesn’t fit the standard Hollywood concept of a “lead actor” as much as guys like Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio and Jamie Foxx. The Academy already had a “character guy” in Don Cheadle, so the short, balding, pudgy, nerdy Giamatti gets left out, and that’s really a shame. Giamatti absolutely nails the insecurity, anxiety, hurt and disappointment of Miles. It’s a tough job Giamatti has for himself in this movie: he has to take a dishonest, weak mess of a man and make the audience care for him–and root for him. And Giamatti more than meets the challenge.
Madsen’s reponsibility in this movie is almost as tough as Giamatti’s: she has to make the audience fall in love with her right alongside Miles. She accomplishes most of that job simply by being luminous, which she does exceedingly well. But she’s also got to convince us that she’s smart, capable, and driven…yet sensitive enough to be attracted to a neurotic schlub like Miles. Maya is both Miles’ ultimate woman and his unattainable fantasy at the same time (or so he thinks; he seems completely oblivious to the near-constant “hey, I’m interested” signals she throws him). Maya, like Miles, is also somewhat broken: she’s coming off of a painful divorce and to her, Miles represents everything her ex-husband wasn’t and couldn’t be. As much as she clearly likes Miles, she’s tentative and conflicted.
Jack and Stephanie are, in many ways, the anti-Miles and Maya. While Miles and Maya both listen to their heads too much, spending hours on end talking, Stephanie and Jack fall into bed almost immediately. Stephanie wraps her heart around the shallow but loveable Jack; she’s needy yet passionate, emotionally fragile, more than a little irresponsible (we see her mother caring for Stephanie’s six-year-old more than we do Stephanie), yet an unforgiving warrior when injured. (This might be a good place to interject the fact that I don’t normally find Sandra Oh particularly attractive, but wow, she’s smokin’ hot in this movie.)
Church digs his way out from the cinematic detritus that is his recent film career to find a part perfect for his smooth egotism; it’s not hard to imagine that the once-famous actor Church is playing is a minor-chord variation on himself. Church reveals all in this movie–literally–as a man wildly out of touch with himself and what he truly wants. Jack is everything a woman like Stephanie could want–charismatic, wild, passionate, caring–and yet at the same time he disgusts her: he’s a liar and a cheat. Church, who (like Madsen and unlike Giamatti) was nominated for an Oscar for his work, brings both sides of Jack to life and finds surprising depth in a character that initially seems like one-dimensional comic relief.
Payne’s previous movies have been kind of hit-and-miss with me. I loved the hell out of the exuberant
I have conflicting feelings about Sideways. It’s hard to get excited about watching 2 white guys go through midlife crises. C’mon, it’s been overdone already and it’s not very interesting. (Why did I go see it? Well, I’ve got this husband who’s kinda into wine….) On the other hand, I loved the writing. The dialogue was awesome–true to the characters and also ALIVE, which happens so rarely in movies that I appreciated this one. And of course, I’m totally on the same page about Paul Giamatti. He rules.
Walter and I had a long discussion about this:
Quote: “Church, who (like Madsen and unlike Giamatti) was nominated for an Oscar for his work, brings both sides of Jack to life and finds surprising depth in a character that initially seems like one-dimensional comic relief.”
Walter thought the writers made Jack unredeemable and I disagree. I’m totally on the same page with you, Allen. I think the writers and Thomas Haden Church did a great job of making Jack appear to be very shallow and nonchalant when he is actually as scared and insecure and in need of love and redemption as Miles. I enjoyed his story immensely–maybe because it was more believable than the thought of Miles getting to sleep with Maya. The movie just didn’t do enough to make me believe that someone like him–so wrapped up in his own disappointments that he has become a bystander in his own life–would get someone like her–smart, beautiful, compassionate, and let’s face it, much more interesting. Even with the He’s-a-writer-and-that’s-sexy angle. That whole scene I just keep thinking, “Oh yeah, like THAT would happen.”
I enjoyed this movie a lot. I found it hilariously funny at times and torturously painful other times. I almost put my hand over my eyes to spare myself from having to watch the humiliating situations Miles found himself in.
I have to agree with Amy that I was not convinced that beautiful and emotionally perfect Maya would so willingly fall for the grotesquely neurotic Miles. Not saying it would never happen, just that I needed more of a build-up.
I loved the way the seemingly two-dimensional characters revealed their complexity. Church and Oh’s characters seemed happily shallow and refreshingly uncomplicated until you realize that they are also extremely needy.
Thank you, Miles for the utter rejection of Merlot. I freaking hate it too! Now I can finally say it out loud.
I’m going to have to disagree with both of you on whether or not the incredibly hot Maya would fall for Miles as quickly as she did. Two reasons:
1) The process wasn’t really all that quick–they established early on that Miles had been coming to her restaurant for a long time and that they knew each other, at least a little, before the movie started. From the first time we’re introduced to Maya and the first time we see her interact with Miles, it’s pretty obvious she’s already into him. He just needs the shove from Jack to get the ball rolling on his end (so to speak). There was plenty of build-up, Michelle–we just didn’t get to see it.
2) About whether someone like her would fall for someone like him in the first place…well, they make it pretty clear that Maya’s far from your normal uber-hot 40-year-old. One of the things that I truly loved about this movie was everything that they didn’t say about the characters. I think that the wounded Maya saw more than a little of herself in Miles (and don’t think the similarity in their names was coincidental) and responded to his fragility and neuroses.
So I completely bought the idea that she and Miles would wind up in the sack at the point they did. But then again, maybe that’s just the nerdy and neurotic side of me hoping chicks as sensual and sexy as Virginia Madsen will find me hot when I’m in my early 40s. (Other than Terry, of course; she’s required by law to find me hot.)
And Jack was completely redeemable, I thought. The entire point of his actions on the trip was to mask the incredible fear he felt when faced with marrying someone he didn’t think he deserved. In the end he realized what he was potentially giving up with his actions and did the right thing. Well, some of the right things–he still lied about the cause of his injuries and, I would assume, likely never told his fiancee/wife about everything that happened on the trip. But just because he’s still kind of an ass doesn’t mean he’s not a redeemable character.
Somehow I knew you would take that the wrong way. I wasn’t convinced that Maya was THAT into Miles to fall into bed with him so quickly. Yes, it was obvious that she was interested, but I thought they were going to string it along a little more. I don’t really like instant gratification in movies. I like to be strung along and beg for them to finally jump in the sack.
I think she was interested enough; it’s not like they got it on the first night. She strung him along at least a little bit, rejecting his painfully awkward bid to kiss her. They had to hang out, what, three or four times before she gave it up?
Jack and Stephanie–THAT was instant gratification. Instant and frequent, apparently.
And the movie’s only two hours…had to have time to get them together, break them up, and get them back together again, all while building up deft and subtle characterization.
I have to say that in the end, yes they made an effort to make Jack deeper and more sympathetic in the scene where he breaks down and cries screaming about how he’s nothing without his fiance. But until that point, his only glimpse of weakness, fear, or confusion was when he confided to Miles that he was thinking about moving out there and settling down with Stephanie. Other than that, and granted I saw the movie a month ago, he was only interested in getting laid and playing golf once before getting laid again.
I think the dynamic between Miles and Maya was wonderfully done. I am afraid I have to side with Allen on that one. But in concentrating on that so well, I think that they glazed over Jack a bit. They wanted you to care, but just didn’t put anything into it until there was like 30 minutes left in the movie. By that time, after all he has done to his fiance, to Stephanie, and after describing the waitress at the end as ‘one of those grateful chicks’ or something of the like, you were already so firm in thinking he’s a prick, you just were disgusted when he acted like his fiance was so important to him.
Don’t get me wrong. This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a long time. I just felt like a fantastic opportunity was lost in developing Jack.
Oh, Allen, Terry isn’t required by law to think your hot. Terry is required by law to ‘say’ she thinks you’re hot. I checked that law …
Jack’s actions throughout the movie felt very real to me–I never had any doubt that his behavior was completely acting out and covering his fear of getting married, even when he was acting at his worst. His character reeked of weakness and fear to me. I was actually less disgusted by his broken-down admission that he loved his fiancee so much than I was by the fact that he told Stephanie he loved her and wanted to move there to be with her, because THAT I don’t think he ever had any intention of doing.
All of that said, I also have a very strong feeling that Jack’s marriage will collapse inside of two years, tops. Something will happen to steal his attention away from his wife and he’ll do something stupid because of it and lose her. Jack reminds me far too much of one of my old friends who shall remain nameless here; both that friend and Jack will always be, in the words of Big Willy, “to one thing constant never.” Unless that “one thing” is himself.
I think you’re hot … :O
Sorry couldn’t help it
. I agree that Jack’s marriage is doomed to fail. I also agree that while ultimately, he never made a serious move toward moving out to wine country and living with Stephanie, the fact that he mentioned it to Miles when the two were alone is enough to validate that it was more of a real thought to him than one would think. If it were just sweet nothings he was yammering to her to keep getting her in the sack, then why would he propose that to Miles that the two of them move up there? Jack is definitely shown to be self centered and my choice of words before were poor. I don’t think he didn’t exhibit any weakness before the end, I just don’t think he showed out and out fear rather than just piggishness. He just seems to view his wedding as a restriction rather than a joy and so he is using a ‘bachelor sendoff’ as an excuse to go get it wet with other women. I think you are right in your analysis of the character, I just don’t think the movie did enough with it early on and over compensated for it at the end.