"Now I have another lie to live down," groans Miles in response to his friend Jack's exaggeration of his unpublished book. In the new film Sideways, based on the novel by Rex Pickett, Miles, played by Paul Giamatti (American Splendor), is a recently divorced and somewhat depressed wine connoisseur who decides to take Jack (Thomas Haden Church), his boisterous ex-roommate, on a bonding trip before Jack's wedding. The dynamic of this friendship has both dramatic and comedic turns as each man's personality plays off of the other during their experiences on their adventurous vacation - the drive from San Diego through California's wine country.
From the beginning, the lifestyles of these two friends are presented as clearly different and almost opposite from each other. The first time the audience sees this is during one of the opening scenes when they discover each man's occupation. Jack is an actor who used to have a main role on a television show but now does mostly commercial voices, and in several points in the movie, does an excellent impersonation of himself. Meanwhile, Miles holds a job as an eighth grade English teacher who during the film is desperately waiting for a phone call from his editor to tell him if his book will be published or not. The tension of this phone call serves as another way in which Miles' life seems to be a pile of anxiety and pessimism, traits which Jack continuously challenges with his own personality.
There are even more differences between each man when identifying their respective plans for the trip. Jack on one hand is ready to use his outgoing, womanizing personality to temporarily "forget" about his wedding and "party" with whoever and whatever company he happens to find. Miles, on the other hand, sees this trip as one to relax, play golf every morning, eat fine food, and sample and learn about the wines for which he has developed a sincere passion. The trip starts on this track, but Jack's personality is the stronger one and as he constantly tries to brighten Miles' spirits with the only way he knows how, Jack's vision of adventure prevails.
The audience sees this at a restaurant-bar called The Hitching Post with the introduction of a familiar waitress of comparable wine knowledge named Maya (Virginia Madsen), and again at a Los Olivos winery when Jack meets self-confident, motorcycle-riding Stephanie (Sandra Oh). Both women become welcomed or not-welcomed additions to the vacation, depending on which character is looking. Jack seizes the opportunity to have company at dinner. And Miles, although he agrees he's attracted to Maya, has questions about Jack's loyalty to his fianc??.
By having these interactions with Maya and Stephanie, Miles and Jack are further examined as characters - their values, their opinions and most importantly their friendshi p is illustrated from the comic to the dramatic. As situations range from Miles running down a vineyard hill or critiquing the exact "feel" of a wine to Jack's golf course antics, this film does have its share of laughs. Conversely, this film also has its share of drama, most particularly during subjects of Miles' ex-wife and Jack's self-discoveries - realities that help conclude the events to the adventure of these two companions.
It seems director Alexander Payne parallels his last effort, About Schmidt, in that both films involve journeys of self-discovery and the hope for some sort of self-fulfillment. There is a constant theme of mellow brightness in the cinematography and the different focuses of the camera allow the mood, most particularly the often drunken state of Miles, to become accessible to the audience. It is through a combination of these techniques and the storyline that creates a world in which the audience can be a part.
