Sideways (123 minutes)
My alternative title would be: The Grapes of Laugh

SUPER MOVIE FAN'S RECOMMENDATION: 2, WAIT AND RENT

Who is in it?:
PAUL GIAMATTI, THOMAS HADEN CHURCH, SANDRA OH, VIRGINIA MADSEN

What is it about?
Sideways is a term for how you may end up when you drink too much. In this movie, the main characters are sideways A LOT. Billed as a comedy, Sideways stars Miles (PAUL GIAMATTI) and Jack (THOMAS HADEN CHURCH--the mechanic on the old TV show Wings) as former college roommates who are on a week-long fling in the California wine country in celebration of Jack's wedding the following Saturday.

The two take off for wine tastings, or should I say guzzlings, throughout the grape country. As part of the journey, Jack picks up a girlfriend (remember he is getting married on Saturday) and Miles goes in and out of his major depressive tendencies, still suffering the aftershocks of his two year old divorce.

As the week goes on, decadence, pill popping and much wine drinking clouds the men's minds as they can't seem to get anything right.

When and Where does this movie take place?
L.A. and the wine country of northern California.

Why see it? Nominated for best picture and HAYDEN CHURCH for best actor, Sideways is one of the few comedies around. However, it is really more sad than funny. Filled with excessive drinking, lying and cheating, Sideways may wring true in L.A.'s chic crowd, but it doesn't quite work for me. The characters are really losers and I don't much admire their behavior or their manipulative tactics. The end may show some hope for one of the leads, but do we really care? Kentuckiana's family values I think will be rightly offended. VIRGINIA MADSEN is nominated for best supporting actress and I think may win for her role as a waitress looking to grow. See it if you have to see the nominated pics, but remember I warned you.

How about the kids?
"R" for language, drug use, excessive drinking and nudity.

Video Pick of the Week
Shark Tale, a cute computer animated flick about a fish that kills a shark who has mob connections.

Next week, we'll review, Hotel Rwanda. Don Cheadle is nominated for best actor in this story of bravery and hope in the face of the brutality that took place in Rwanda in 1994. Cheadle's character, Paul, saves the lives of over 1,000 people. An amazing story.

John Fischetti can be heard Friday's on the Wayne Perkey show on Oldies 103, WRKA and can be reached at fischettij@uncw.edu



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