Sideways

Uh-oh, I watched Sideways again. Probably a sign something is up that I need to examine. It is becoming a pretty addictive guilty pleasure. What I think draws me to it the most is the naturalism. That comes from the script and the performances, mostly. Secondarily it has this blend of escapism with sobering sadness. This is largely a movie about depression. Not so much clinical depression but the depression that comes with getting older and having to live with the consequences of all your cumulative choices. I’ve rarely seen that more accurately put to film. And thirdly I’m incredibly romantic about the California coast and wine regions. But I’ve spent enough time there that I see it for what it is and not some fantasized version of it. Sideways takes place in the real world version of California. In that sense this movie is essentially the west coast version of 25th Hour. They both capture the essence of places that I love and have complicated relationships with. And as I age the themes of both films resonate more so a perfect storm of nostalgia and personal experience become solidified and both movies have become works of art that grow alongside me, a person who lives on neither coast but spends ~a month per year on each.