No hangovers here

Firstly, a warning if you're planning to see this film whilst on a January no-alcohol detox. Don't. You'll only make yourself miserable. Instead, permit yourself a delicious glass of wine, either before, during and after enjoying this terrific movie, which follows the journey of two friends on a bachelor week through the Central Californian wine region. There — isn't that better?

Miles (Paul Giamatti) is a wine enthusiast — an oenophile as he dubs himself. A short, dumpy, wasp-ish sort, he lives in modest squalor since his messy divorce, which rests on his sloping shoulders with a heavy sadness. Miserable and adrift in a teaching job, with an unpublishable novel his only source of comfort, he's hurtling towards middle-age but still stealing money from his mother. However, he's enlivened by his passion for wine, so organises a buddy tour of Californian wineries for his old friend Jack, who's about to get married. Jack's the on-paper opposite of Miles: a craggily handsome ageing roué, who, despite his impending nuptials, is determined to get laid on his vacation, and also, as he encourages his friend, to 'get your bone smooched', too.

Off they drive through the sun-dappled rolling countryside and orange-crested hills of this dazzling region. Miles is in his element, proudly demonstrating his fine nose for wine-tasting to Jack, who's more interested in chucking back the booze. Despite Miles' predilection for pompous snobbery ('I am NOT drinking Merlot!') and Jack's for sleazy swordsmanship, the natural friendship and sparky repartee cleaves you to this odd couple.

And as to Jack's plan, they meet and hook up with two women: Jack jumps into bed with the feisty wine-pourer Stephanie (Sandra Oh) and Miles embarks on a fledgling relationship with the smart and stunning waitress Maya (Virginia Madsen). Naturally, these two alliances don't quite go to plan, and both result in each man discovering hard truths about themselves.

If this makes Sideways sound like a highbrow fest of dreary worthiness, then it's not meant to in the slightest. Suffused with comic set-pieces (watch out for the scenes involving the wallet retrieval and the car in particular) and boasting an extraordinarily naturalistic bond between all four leads, it's a delight from start to finish. Paul Giamatti is simply excellent as the world-weary but loveable Miles, delicately depicting his raw misery and loneliness under the surface tension. Thomas Haden Church is exceptional too as the flighty, childish Jack — his treacle-over-gravel voice ideal for the washed-up actor whose only work now comes in voiceovers — "Nought percent finance until January 1!"

Directed by Alexander Payne, who gave us the tremendous Election and About Schmidt — both of which focus on the fallibility and failed ambitions in the Everyman - Sideways is currently the recipient of a gaggle of awards, and is up for the Best Picture Oscar. Without resorting to hyperbole, this exquisite movie deserves them all. It's not often that a small, character-led movie not only lives up to the weight of its expectations but exceeds them, neatly side-stepping cinematic convention but leaving you uplifted and invigorated too. What's more, this is one exercise in wine appreciation that won't give you a hangover.

Sideways
Cert: 15