2008 Woodie Awards
Best picture nominee fails to live up to hype
By Blake Baxendell
Issue date: 2/4/05 Section: Entertainment
When I recently had the chance to see the overrated movie "Sideways," this reviewer had to think to himself, "What are other critics thinking when they watch films like this one?"
"Sideways" has repeatedly been hyped up for the Academy Award's Best Film of the Year. Paul Giamatti was also nominated for Best Actor of the Year. But while watching this film, I didn't find sufficient evidence to back up the claims of the folks at the Academy. The film had some funny parts to it, but in my opinion did not live up to the hype.
The story is about two men who take a road trip one last time before one of them gets married. Both men are suffering from a mid-life crisis, and cannot get it together.
Miles (Giamatti) is a depressed failure of a writer who enjoys the finer things in life - among them, the taste of wine. He is an English teacher whose career is something to be desired, and is desperately waiting for his book to be published.
Miles is the best man for his buddy Jack (Thomas Haden Church). Jack is a washed up actor who is still unsure about getting married. The two join early in the film, and take a road trip to Californian wine vineyards for an entire week. During this trip, the two encounter many crazy and funny problems.
Before Jack gets married, he wants to have sex with other women to get it out of his system. All Miles wants is to enjoy the company of his friend Jack. During part of their trip, the men meet two females: Maya (Virginia Madsen) and Stephanie (Sandra Oh).
Each woman helps bring out the identities of Miles and Jack. The two bond more and more through the movie, and even run idiotically down gigantic hills with bottles of wine in their hands. Throughout the movie, again and again, you ask yourself, "Will Jack follow through with the wedding?"
Giamatti is a very talented actor, but usually plays the same type of character in every film. Giamatti plays depressing characters in many other films, such as "American Splendor." His character brings a lot of humor and sarcasm to the table, and his facial expressions are irresistible not to laugh at.
"Sideways" has repeatedly been hyped up for the Academy Award's Best Film of the Year. Paul Giamatti was also nominated for Best Actor of the Year. But while watching this film, I didn't find sufficient evidence to back up the claims of the folks at the Academy. The film had some funny parts to it, but in my opinion did not live up to the hype.
The story is about two men who take a road trip one last time before one of them gets married. Both men are suffering from a mid-life crisis, and cannot get it together.
Miles (Giamatti) is a depressed failure of a writer who enjoys the finer things in life - among them, the taste of wine. He is an English teacher whose career is something to be desired, and is desperately waiting for his book to be published.
Miles is the best man for his buddy Jack (Thomas Haden Church). Jack is a washed up actor who is still unsure about getting married. The two join early in the film, and take a road trip to Californian wine vineyards for an entire week. During this trip, the two encounter many crazy and funny problems.
Before Jack gets married, he wants to have sex with other women to get it out of his system. All Miles wants is to enjoy the company of his friend Jack. During part of their trip, the men meet two females: Maya (Virginia Madsen) and Stephanie (Sandra Oh).
Each woman helps bring out the identities of Miles and Jack. The two bond more and more through the movie, and even run idiotically down gigantic hills with bottles of wine in their hands. Throughout the movie, again and again, you ask yourself, "Will Jack follow through with the wedding?"
Giamatti is a very talented actor, but usually plays the same type of character in every film. Giamatti plays depressing characters in many other films, such as "American Splendor." His character brings a lot of humor and sarcasm to the table, and his facial expressions are irresistible not to laugh at.
