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	Sideways
	Alexander Payne Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen, Sandra Oh, Marylouise Burke, Jessica Hecht 2004		Paul Giamatti ("American Splendor") cements his status as a phenomenal character actor capable of carrying a movie with his sympathetic, layered performance as an insecure sad sack in "Sideways," director/co-screenwriter Alexander Payne's fourth feature. It's an affectionate, unsaccharine take on the buddy picture; a strong potable concocted with equal drams of drama, comedy, and romance. Miles (Giamatti) is a failed novelist and wine snob who yearns for his ex-wife. To forget his troubles and indulge in some male bonding, he takes his best friend Jack (Thomas Haden Church) — a washed-up TV actor and horndog who's about to get married — on a road trip from Los Angeles to the vineyards of the Santa Ynez Valley. It becomes a journey of rueful discovery. The guys hook up with a sassy winery hostess (Sandra Oh) and a knowledgeable, kind, vulnerable waitress (Virginia Madsen). But the connections are hampered by self-delusion and inebriation. Already at the forefront of contemporary filmmakers, Payne brings wit, smarts, a sociopolitical point of view, a mastery of visual language, and the ability to draw the best out of his actors to every project he's done. His first three films — "Citizen Ruth," "Election" and "About Schmidt" — are each different in tone, but a certain astringent humor cuts through them all. "Sideways" — often as prickly as the others, although a little kinder and gentler — is Payne at his best.


	Friday, April 19, 2024





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