Here’s an interesting story in the Baltimore Sun on the impact of the film, “Sideways“, on wineries and other businesses in the Santa Barbara wine country. This ties in nicely with my review from yesterday’s show.
Your audio wine guide.
By Tim Elliott
Here’s an interesting story in the Baltimore Sun on the impact of the film, “Sideways“, on wineries and other businesses in the Santa Barbara wine country. This ties in nicely with my review from yesterday’s show.
Another really fine show; including squeezing the best parts out of “Sideways”: the two speeches on the struggle of the grapes and the lives and passion of the winemakers. I never fail to open a bottle of Merlot without thinking of Paul Giamatti’s character whose indictment of the variety opens your show.
I never understood the name of the movie. Did I miss something along the line or was there something in the script that didn’t make it to the screen? I figured there’s be some speech about how you need to keep the cork moist and be able to see the precipitate.
Thanks for your comment, Jerry. I thought the title referred more to the characters lives, which are a bit off the norm, but it could also relate to Maya’s view of wines getting more interesting as they decline, presumably well stored.
I found an interview with Thomas Haden Church (‘Jack’) who explains it this way:
Q: What’s the title of this movie mean to you?
A: 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. And there’s actually some stuff that we shot that was cut out of the movie, these very antagonistic phone calls with his fiancée that Alexander [Payne] took out of the movie.
Source: http://romanticmovies.about.com/od/sideways/a/sideth101204.htm