''Sideways'' is a 2004 American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

road film A road movie is a film genre in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the theme of alienatio ...

directed by

Alexander Payne Constantine Alexander Payne (; born February 10, 1961) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known for the films ''Citizen Ruth'' (1996), ''Election'' (1999), '' About Schmidt'' (2002), '' Sideways'' (2004), '' The D ...

and written by Jim Taylor and Payne. A

film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dia ...

of Rex Pickett's 2004 novel of the same name, ''Sideways'' follows two men in their forties, Miles Raymond (

Paul Giamatti Paul Edward Valentine Giamatti (; born June 6, 1967) is an American actor and film producer. He first garnered attention for his breakout role in '' Private Parts'' as Kenny "Pig Vomit" Rushton, leading to supporting roles in ''Saving Private R ...

), a depressed teacher and unsuccessful writer, and Jack Cole (

Thomas Haden Church Thomas Haden Church (born Thomas Richard McMillen; June 17, 1960) is an American actor. After starring in the 1990s sitcom ''Wings'' and playing the lead for two seasons in ''Ned & Stacey'' (1995–1997)'','' Church became known for his film work, ...

), a past-his-prime actor, who take a week-long road trip to Santa Barbara County wine country to celebrate Jack's upcoming wedding.

Sandra Oh Sandra Miju Oh (born July 20, 1971) is a Canadian–American actress. She is best known for her starring roles as Rita Wu on the HBO comedy '' Arliss'' (1996–2002), Dr. Cristina Yang on the ABC medical drama series ''Grey's Anatomy'' (2005 ...

and Virginia Madsen also star as women they encounter during their trip. The film premiered at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

on September 13, 2004, and was released in the United States on October 22, 2004. ''Sideways'' received widespread acclaim from critics and regarded as one of the greatest films of the 2000s. It was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Haden Church) and Best Supporting Actress (Madsen), winning

Best Adapted Screenplay This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress# ...

at the 77th Academy Awards.

Plot

Miles Raymond is an unpublished writer, a wine aficionado, and a depressed, middle-aged English teacher living in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

. He takes Jack Cole, his soon-to-be-married actor friend and former college roommate, on a road trip through the Santa Ynez Valley wine country. Jack now does commercial

voice-overs Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non- diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations. ...

and plans to enter his future father-in-law's successful real estate business. Soon after the trip begins, Miles insists on stopping to see his mother in Oxnard, as it is the day before her birthday. He steals a thousand dollars from her room that night. The men sneak out the next morning to avoid the birthday gathering. Miles wants to spend the week relaxing, playing golf, and enjoying good food and wine. However, much to Miles' consternation, Jack is on the prowl and wants one last sexual fling before settling into domestic life. In the wine country, the pair dine at The Hitching Post II. Jack sees that Maya, a waitress with whom Miles is casually acquainted, is interested in Miles; Miles thinks she is only being professionally friendly. Jack lies to Maya that Miles' manuscript has been accepted for publication, although it is only being considered. At a wine tasting the next day, Jack arranges a double date with a wine pourer named Stephanie, who is also acquainted with Maya. During the date, Miles gets drunk and telephones Victoria, his ex-wife, after learning from Jack that she has remarried and will be bringing her new husband to Jack's wedding. The two couples go to Stephanie's home, where she and Jack adjourn to her bedroom for sex. Miles and Maya connect through their mutual interest in wine, and Miles kisses her awkwardly. As they are leaving separately, Miles gives her a copy of his manuscript, which Maya had earlier expressed interest in reading. Jack claims to have fallen in love with Stephanie and tells Miles he wants to move to Santa Ynez Valley to be closer to her. After spending time with Jack and Stephanie at wineries and a picnic, Miles and Maya return to her apartment and have sex. The next day, Miles lets it slip that Jack is to be married. Disgusted with the men's dishonesty, Maya dumps Miles. Jack and Miles go to a winery that Miles finds subpar. After hearing from his literary agent that his manuscript has been rejected, an upset Miles pesters the pourer for a "full pour" of wine. When the server refuses, Miles drinks from the spit bucket, creating a scene. Jack intervenes and drives Miles back to the motel. Upon arrival, Stephanie approaches Jack knowing about his engagement and breaks Jack's nose with her motorcycle helmet, screaming about being lied to. Miles takes Jack to the ER and leaves Maya an apologetic voice message, admitting that his book is not going to be published. That night, Jack hooks up with a waitress named Cammi, despite Miles's protests. Later, Jack returns to the motel naked, having been caught having sex with Cammi by her husband. Jack begs Miles to help him retrieve his wallet, which contains custom wedding rings. Miles sneaks into the house, where he discovers Cammi and her husband having sex. Miles grabs the wallet and runs, barely escaping the nude and irate husband, screaming he will find them. Jack intentionally drives Miles's car into a tree so it looks as if he broke his nose in an accident. The pair return to the fiancée's home, where Jack is warmly received by the family. Following the wedding ceremony, Miles runs into his ex-wife Victoria and meets her new husband, Ken. Victoria tells Miles that she is pregnant. Miles absconds before the reception, driving back to his San Diego apartment. Alone, he drinks his prized wine, a 1961

Château Cheval Blanc Château Cheval Blanc (French for "White Horse Castle"), is a wine producer in Saint-Émilion in the Bordeaux wine region of France. Its wine received the highest rank of Premier Grand Cru Classé (A) status in the Classification of Saint-Émi ...

, from a disposable styrofoam soda cup at a fast-food restaurant. Miles returns to the routine of teaching school. One day he receives a voicemail from Maya, who says she enjoyed his manuscript and invites him to visit. Miles drives back to wine country and knocks on Maya's door.

Cast

as Miles Raymond *

as Jack Cole * Virginia Madsen as Maya Randall *

as Stephanie * Marylouise Burke as Mrs. Raymond, Miles' Mother * Jessica Hecht as Victoria Cortland * Lee Brooks as Ken Cortland * Missy Doty as Cammi * MC Gainey as Cammi's husband *

Alysia Reiner Alysia Reiner is an American actress. She is best known for playing Natalie "Fig" Figueroa in the Netflix comedy drama series ''Orange Is the New Black'' (2013–2019), for which she won a Screen Actors Guild Award for her role as part of the en ...

as Christine Erganian * Shake Tukhmanyan as Mrs. Erganian * Shaun Duke as Mike Erganian * Stephanie Faracy as Ginny, Stephanie's mother * Natalie Carter as Siena, Stephanie's daughter * Patrick Gallagher as Gary the Bartender * Joe Marinelli as Frass Canyon Pourer

Impact on wine industry

The film drew attention and increased tourism to the Santa Ynez Valley wine-growing region of California's Central Coast. During the film, Miles speaks fondly of the red wine

varietal A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

pinot noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French words for ''pine'' and ''black.'' The word ''pine ...

while denigrating

merlot Merlot is a dark blue–colored wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of ''merle'', the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the ...

. After the film's U.S. release in October 2004, merlot sales dropped 2% while pinot noir sales increased 16% in the

Western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the We ...

. A similar trend occurred in British wine outlets. A 2009 study by

Sonoma State University Sonoma State University (SSU, Sonoma State, or Sonoma) is a public university in Rohnert Park in Sonoma County, California, US. It is one of the smallest members of the California State University (CSU) system. Sonoma State offers 92 Bachelor's ...

found that ''Sideways'' slowed the growth in merlot sales volume and caused its price to fall, but the film's main effect on the U.S. wine industry was a rise in the sales volume and price of pinot noir and in overall wine consumption. A 2022 study in the ''

Journal of Wine Economics A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization * Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, ...

'' found that ''Sideways'' caused a reduction in demand for merlot and an increase in demand for pinot noir, which led large winemakers to grow pinot noir grapes in low-quality land and blend those grapes with the grapes grown in high-quality areas just to meet demand, ultimately leading to worse pinot noir wines.

Sideways Pinot Noir

Rex Pickett, author of the novel ''Sideways'', after a three-month research trip in Chile for his 2015 ''

Sideways 3 Chile ''Sideways 3 Chile'' is a 2015 novel by Rex Pickett. It is a sequel to his two previous novels ''Sideways'' (2004) and ''Vertical'' (2010) and the third novel in the '' Sideways Trilogy''. ''Sideways 3 Chile'' continues the story of novelist Mi ...

'' novel, fell in love with the country, the people, and their wines. In 2018, Pickett launched his own pinot noir, named ''Sideways''.

Soundtrack

The original

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' ...

features 15

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...

s composed and produced by

Rolfe Kent Rolfe R. Kent (born 18 April 1963) is an English film score composer. Biography Kent was born in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. He attended St Albans School, worked at Balrossie School in Renfrewshire, Scotland, then graduated in Psychol ...

and was orchestrated and arranged for the band by Tony Blondal. The album was nominated for the

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

for "Best Original Score", and the music proved so popular there was demand for a national tour. Eventually a few cities were chosen to perform in as the composer was too busy to commit to more. The romantic leitmotif shared by Miles and Maya is excerpted from ''

Symbiosis Symbiosis (from Greek , , "living together", from , , "together", and , bíōsis, "living") is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction between two different biological organisms, be it mutualistic, commensalistic, or para ...

'' by

Claus Ogerman Claus Ogerman (born Klaus Ogermann; 29 April 1930 – 8 March 2016) was a German arranger, conductor, and composer best known for his work with Billie Holiday, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Frank Sinatra, Michael Brecker, and Diana Krall. Life and wor ...

and

Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...

. # "Asphalt Groovin'" – 4:00 # "Constantine Snaps His Fingers" – 3:03 # "Drive!" – 3:56 # "Picnic" – 2:15 # "Lonely Day" – 1:40 # "Wine Safari" – 2:13 # "Miles' Theme" – 2:59 # "Los Olivos" – 2:43 # "Chasing the Golfers" – 3:03 # "Walk to Hitching Post" – 2:32 # "Abandoning the Wedding" – 3:25 # "Slipping Away As Mum Sleeps" – 1:00 # "Bowling Tango" – 0:49 # "I'm Not Drinking Any #@%!$ Merlot!" – 1:13 # "Miles And Maya" – 2:26

Reception

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, ''Sideways'' has an approval rating of 97% based on 233 reviews, and an average rating of 8.60/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Charming, thoughtful, and often funny, ''Sideways'' is a decidedly mature road trip comedy full of excellent performances." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, the film has a

weighted average The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...

score of 94 out of 100 based on 42 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...

gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. ''Time Out'' described the film as "intelligent, funny and moving", and

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

of the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicago ...

'' gave it four stars out of four, writing that, "what happens during the seven days adds up to the best human comedy of the year – comedy, because it is funny, and human, because it is surprisingly moving." With the exception of Giamatti, who had already starred in the critically acclaimed film '' American Splendor'' (2003), the film was a career breakthrough for the stars. Church and Madsen were each nominated for the

Screen Actors Guild Award Screen Actors Guild Awards (also known as SAG Awards) are accolades given by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The award was founded in 1952 to recognize outstanding performances in movie an ...

, and

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for their performances, winning the

Broadcast Film Critics Association Award The Critics' Choice Movie Awards (formerly known as the Broadcast Film Critics Association Award) is an awards show presented annually by the American-Canadian Critics Choice Association (CCA) to honor the finest in cinematic achievement. Writt ...

and

Independent Spirit Award The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with acrylic glas ...

for their respective categories. Giamatti was described as "The World's Best

Character Actor A character actor is a supporting actor who plays unusual, interesting, or eccentric characters.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrieved 7 August 2014, "..a breed of actor who has the ability to b ...

" by ''Time'' magazine. In 2005 Sandra Oh went on to star in the ABC

medical drama A medical drama is a television show or film in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment. Most recent medical dramatic programming go beyond the events pertaining to the characters' jobs and portray som ...

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into s ...

'', for which she won two Screen Actors Guild Awards and one Golden Globe Award. ''Sideways'' was ranked 494th on ''

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

''s 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time. '' Total Film'' put ''Sideways'' on its list of 100 Greatest Movies of All Time. In 2013, the

Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), headquartered in New York City and affiliated with the AFL–CIO * The Writers Gu ...

also ranked its script as the 90th greatest ever written.

Stage and musical adaptations

In 2019, it was announced that ''Sideways'' was scheduled to be adapted for a stage musical. Kathleen Marshall is expected to be the director and choreographer for the musical, which was aiming for a spring or summer 2020 tryout in a regional venue prior to

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. The musical will have a book by Rex Pickett and the score by Anthony Leigh Adams. A play adapted by author Rex Pickett from the ''Sideways'' novel was produced at multiple theaters in the United States and the United Kingdom, including at the La Jolla Playhouse. In addition to the musical, it was reported that Pickett had written screenplays based on his two ''Sideways'' sequels already in print, ''Vertical'' and ''Sideways 3 Chile''.

Accolades

As of 2022, Payne and Taylor are the only two screenwriters to ever sweep the rarest achievements known as " The Big Four" critics awards ( LAFCA, NBR, NYFCC, NSFC) as well as the Oscar,

Globe A globe is a spherical model of Earth, of some other celestial body, or of the celestial sphere. Globes serve purposes similar to maps, but unlike maps, they do not distort the surface that they portray except to scale it down. A model glo ...

, BAFTA, WGA, and Critic's Choice for Best Writer to win for a single film.

Japanese remake

Fox International Productions and

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Owned and operated by the it is the key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network S ...

released a Japanese-language remake of the film in October 2009, サイドウェイズ, often rendered in

Romaji The romanization of Japanese is the use of Latin script to write the Japanese language. This method of writing is sometimes referred to in Japanese as . Japanese is normally written in a combination of logographic characters borrowed from Ch ...

as ''

Saidoweizu is a 2009 comedy-drama film directed by Cellin Gluck that is a remake of the 2004 Academy Award-nominated film ''Sideways''. Unlike its predecessor that was set in the Santa Barbara wine country, it is primarily set in the Napa Valley wine regio ...

''. The film is directed by Cellin Gluck and stars

Katsuhisa Namase is a Japanese actor, known primary for his roles in Japanese television dramas. His roles are often positions of authority, such as managers, principals, or police officers, but many of these characters also share a certain kookiness and incom ...

Fumiyo Kohinata is a Japanese actor. Filmography Film * '' Begging for Love'' (1998) * '' Give It All'' (1998) * '' Ring 2'' (1999) - Dr. Kawajiri * '' Audition'' (1999) - Television producer * ''Minna no Ie'' (2001) * '' Turn'' (2001) * '' Dark Water'' (2002 ...

Kyōka Suzuki is a Japanese actress. Life and career Suzuki appeared in Shinji Aoyama's '' Mike Yokohama: A Forest with No Name'' and Yōichi Sai's ''Blood and Bones''. She won the Best Actress award at the 1998 Yokohama Film Festival for her role in '' W ...

, and

Rinko Kikuchi (born ; January 6, 1981) is a Japanese actress. She was the first Japanese actress to be nominated for an Academy Award in 50 years, for her work in '' Babel'' (2006). Kikuchi's other notable films include '' Norwegian Wood'' (2010), which ...

, and has a soundtrack composed and performed by Hawaiian-born ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro. The remake shifts the setting of the film to

Napa Valley Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Napa County in California's Wine Country. It was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) on January 27, 1981. Napa Valley is considered one of the premier ...

. Although listed as an executive producer, Payne was not involved with the remake, although he gave it his blessing. Giamatti declined an invitation to make an unspecified

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

in the film.

Possible sequel

Pickett wrote a sequel to his novel, '' Vertical'', in 2011, following Miles and Jack on a road trip to Oregon with Miles' mother. Payne has declined to consider a sequel to the film. Fox Searchlight owns the rights to the characters, but Payne's lack of interest makes the film a non-starter for Fox.

References

External links

* *
The Danish Soul of That Town in ''Sideways''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sideways 2004 films 2004 black comedy films American black comedy films 2004 independent films 2004 romantic comedy-drama films American buddy comedy-drama films American romantic comedy-drama films BAFTA winners (films) Best Musical or Comedy Picture Golden Globe winners 2000s English-language films Films about actors Films about friendship Films about infidelity Films about vacationing Films about wine Films about writers Films based on American novels Films directed by Alexander Payne Films set in California Films shot in California Films whose writer won the Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award Films whose writer won the Best Adapted Screenplay BAFTA Award Fox Searchlight Pictures films Independent Spirit Award for Best Film winners Midlife crisis films 2000s road comedy-drama films American road comedy-drama films American independent films Santa Ynez Valley Films with screenplays by Alexander Payne Films with screenplays by Jim Taylor (writer) Films scored by Rolfe Kent 2004 comedy films 2004 drama films Films set in San Diego 2000s American films