Finally, a movie made specifically for ME.

If someone had told me that there was a Japanese remake of Sideways, ALSO set in California wine country (Napa instead of Santa Ynez) , I wouldn't have believed them. Naw. WHAT. scuse me? It's as if director Cellin Gluck was answering to a higher calling. And that calling was ME in a dream I didn't know that I had.

In almost every conceivable way the film is a shocking and unnecessary failure. Very clearly a remake of the film, not so much the book, with the exception of a few details. For brevity's sake, and since this is a comparative review, I will refer to them by the original character's names.

The…

Despite doing a video on this, comparing it to the original film it's adapting, I find it really hard to say anything about this movie. It's not terrible mind you, but it is certainly average, painfully so. It's Sideways with out any of the bite, or the humanity (for that matter).

I think the best way to describe it is "factory made". It clearly feels like it was made by studio executive orders in a bid to capitalize off the growing film markets in Asian by throwing some folks from Japan in a distinctly American film (this adaptation still takes place in California) and tweaking a few things (largely removing any sex or nudity, and really anything that might cause…

Watching this film makes one ponder what it is they want out of a remake? Do you want a refreshed version of the same movie, or do you want it retain the spirit of the original within a new bag. With the Japanese remake of Sideways, I was hoping for the original Sideways done in Japanese with Japanese characters. I was even down for a shot for shot remake of Sideways, just with some Japanese flair. This is a completely different movie however, a through and through Japanese comedy that doesn't retain anything from the original except for some broad plot points and character ideas. Hell, even Paul Giamatti's character isn't even a sad wine snob, he's just a typical…