"Released in October 2004, it's about two buddies on a bachelor's weekend in wine country. The one who's about to get married, Jack, played by Thomas Haden Church, is a cad desperate to enjoy his last days of freedom. The other, Paul Giamatti's Miles, is a divorcé pedantically obsessed with wine. Over the course of the weekend, they drink, Jack chases women, they drink, Jack tries to get Miles to chase women, they drink, they bicker, they drink, they bicker, they grow."
"All it took was one line of dialogue. It arrives about a third of the way into the film, as the guys are preparing to meet up with two women. "If they want to drink merlot, we're drinking merlot," Jack warns his friend. "No, if anybody orders merlot, I'm leaving," Miles responds." I am not drinking any fucking merlot! " At the time this line was first uttered, people were chugging merlot down by the glassful."
Sideways follows two friends on a bachelor's weekend in wine country: Jack, a cad eager for last days of freedom, and Miles, a divorcé obsessively focused on wine. The film portrays their drinking, flirtations, arguments, and gradual personal growth over a contained, mellow weekend. The movie grossed $110 million worldwide and earned five Oscar nominations. A single line in the film—Miles' emphatic rejection of merlot—became a cultural flashpoint that reportedly depressed merlot sales and created long-lasting consumer aversions, with some drinkers unable to bring themselves to buy merlot even years later.
Read at Slate Magazine
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