Comedy and pathos in an Odd Couple redux!

It's a life filled with disappointments for Miles (Paul Giamatti), in Alexander Payne's movie, "Sideways." A broken marriage, rejected manuscripts, and other common indignities, have not prevented him from being a good, honest, and moral man with many complaints.

He is on the verge of giving up on life, but first he will depart on a trip to the wine country with his unlikely friend, Jack (Thomas Church) for a week of wine, golf, and masculine bonding. Jack, a B actor and fading lady-killer, is on his last single adventure before his upcoming first marriage, while Miles is anxiously awaiting word from the publisher on his latest novel. For Jack, it is to be a final fling before committing to marriage; for Miles a get-away from the humdrum of his life as a divorced high school English teacher and frustrated unpublished novelist.

It soon becomes apparent they have somewhat different intentions for their week together, when on the drive up in an open convertible, Jack pops open a bottle of warm bubbly wine and drinks from the bottle, as wine connoisseur Miles watches in horror. A scenic drive up the California coast brings them to a hotel in the touristy Danish town of Solvang, where they headquarter for excursions to local wineries, as Miles instructs Jack on the finer points of wine tasting. Wine is clearly Miles passion, as he discusses color, nose, and subtle hints of the tastes of apple, pear, and asparagus. Jack has a different passion, as he promises Miles to get him laid before the week is out.

Miles is the soul of orderliness and reason, but it is apparent he has at least a little admiration and envy for Jack's wild spontaneity and earthiness. They quickly and easily connect with the recently divorced waitress, Maya (Virginia Madsen), vaguely acquainted with Miles from past visits, and an eager bartender, Stephanie (Sandra Oh), who Jack easily picks up with his purchase of a few cases of wine.

An engaging dinner leads to an invitation to Stephanie's place, where Jack and Stephanie quickly get right down to business, while Miles explains to Maya his great admiration and affection for pinot noir. His description of the difficult and precarious process of growing those grapes and converting them to an excellent wine is an obvious metaphor for the uncertainties and disappointments of his own life. Maya listens intently, obviously taken with the sensitive and intellectual Miles, but he makes no inappropriate move. The scene plays out very slowly, lovingly, with great attention to details, as Payne gets extraordinary performances from both actors in this gentle and evocative scene.

In subsequent days, as Jack gets totally preoccupied with the sensuous Stephanie, Miles is a pretty good sport, drinking and eating alone, and throwing an occasional tantrum at Jack's recklessness. There are comic moments that quickly turn to sorrow, and finally into a hilarious/sad/violent outburst from Stephanie when she learns of Jack's impending wedding.

The resulting gathering gloom is relieved by an extraordinarily comic confrontation between Jack, Miles, a plump waitress eager for an interlude with Jack, and her jealous husband, when he arrives home an hour earlier than expected.

The performances and the characters are somewhat reminiscent of earlier Payne work, and the flawed but comical characters of "Election" and "About Schmidt," emotional and thought-provoking, as we see hints of familiar character foibles shared by many, a bit exaggerated to good comic effect, and with more than a touch of pathos.

Directed by Alexander Payne
Written by Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor
Director of Photography, Phedon Papamichael
Music by Rolfe Kent
Production Design by Jane Ann Stewart
Produced by Michael Londo.
124 minutes. Rated R.

It's a five star must-see, in my opinion. Sure to amuse and titillate; and also likely to arouse your interest in learning more about the subtleties of wine!