50 Movie Challenge, Sideways
6. Sideways. 2004. Directed by Alexander Payne. A funny, touching, skillfully executed mismatched-buddy movie. The acting and characterizations are great, and it’s pretty to look at. Sitting under dimmed chandeliers at the Heights theater, munching alternately on their surprisingly tasty popcorn and Junior Mints, I remembered why I love going to the movies. I still, however, have no idea why it’s called Sideways.
March 16th, 2005 at 2:53 pm
I took it to be an expression of the sideways nature by which the main charaters were progressing through their lives. Miles is an ambitious novelist, with seemingly no ambition about himself or his life; he can barely stand to participate in the process of trying to get published. Jack is a man-child who has apparently reaped great personal rewards from being so, but as he stands on the verge of giving it all up, he poignantly reveals that he can’t wait to leave it behind and move on, if only he can keep from screwing it up.
I love expressions of life as a messy and comical thing, so I dug this movie in a big way. I’d like to read the book someday, and see how explicitly the author delves into the theme; maybe that would shed some light on the ‘Sideways’ part of it as well.
I can’t recall when it was or who taught me this (it must have been one of my playwrighting teachers, because I doubt I came to this on my own), but there is a narrative aesthetic in which every main character should have at least one moment where they are absolutely right about something, and at least one where they are totally wrong. The theory is, if you can make them both true, you’ve got a decent character.
March 17th, 2005 at 12:28 am
I also liked the movie, but wasn’t sure whay the title meant. According to this interview with Thomas Haden Church the title is “open to interpretation.”
“What’s the title of this movie mean to you?
The title of the movie is open to interpretation. We talked about it often. You go through a door sideways. Or the little roads that go off to the wineries in the Santa Ynez valley are sideways of the 101. But it’s also these little portals that open up, and the experience. These guys are at such a crossroads in their lives. Their lives have been largely defined by failure and you would think the prospect of marriage, which is supposed to be bountiful and hopeful, it’s just really another kind of tangential thing in his life. I mean, he’s so kind of desultory about it even at the beginning. Whenever Miles comes, he can’t wait to get away from it. One week away from being married and he can’t wait to get away from his new in-laws and his fiancée.”
http://oscars.about.com/od/thenominees/a/sideth101204.htm
March 17th, 2005 at 10:11 am
I took the title to be a reference to the one wine tasting scene (because that sure limits it down!) where the guy’s going through all the steps of tasting wine; and he holds the glass on its side to look at the way the color changes at it reaches the edges…which, well, okay, I don’t know what THAT is meant to mean, but it seems to resonate off the peaking/decaying idea from later in the movie.
March 17th, 2005 at 12:02 pm
Ooh! Ooh! I know this one! Shortly after I saw the movie, I read the book, and it’s made very clear about five pages in that the two main characters use “sideways” as their primary euphamism for “drunk,” as in, “It was still early and I was already pretty sideways.” I remember wondering, at the time, why the hell they didn’t take five seconds to explain that in the movie.
March 17th, 2005 at 1:46 pm
Thank you, Horshack. I thought it might be explained in the book and not in the movie, so I’m glad Erin was able to confirm this–thanks! It’s both a good euphemism as well as a good metaphor everything that’s been suggested, so perhaps Payne left it out of the movie to encourage people to think about it. Also, does anyone know the poster artist? I’m almost certain that it is comic book creator Andi Watson, but I’m coming up with nothing on Google.
March 19th, 2005 at 10:29 am
My sister Sydney works in a wine shop and says that sales of Pinot have rocketed while sales of Merlot have plunged, all in response to the movie.