A curmudgeonly instructor at a New England prep school is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually, he forms an unlikely b...
The moody, melancholy undercurrent that can sometimes permeate the holiday season is masterfully expressed in “The Holdovers,” a story that’s brimming with themes of loneliness, grief, and regret. Although this is a film that deals with the absence of family, director Alexander Payne and writer David Hemingson lend just enough wit and brevity to create a well-rounded coming-of-age story that’s not only heartwarming, but has the potential to become a Christmas classic for sophisticates with a sentimental streak. I loved everything about this film, and it’s one of the very best of the year.
Set in 1970, Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) is a curmudgeonly instructor at an elite New England boarding school. He’s not particularly well liked by his students nor his peers, and this year he’s being forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the “holdovers,” a handful of students who have nowhere else to go. After a few of the other students find alternate arrangements, Hunham is left with Angus (Dominic Sessa), the smartest guy at school as well as the troublemaker of the bunch.
When Hunham’s pompous arrogance collides with Angus’s belligerent attitude, the two spend their time antagonizing each other with great delight. Their war of words calms only when fellow holdover Mary (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), the school’s cafeteria cook and grieving mother of a teenage son recently killed in the Vietnam War, reminds them that all they have is each other this holiday season. Stranded together for two weeks, the trio bonds over a common sense of loss, isolation, and a nagging fear of being alone and unloved.
It’s a highly affecting story that’s elevated by the rich complexity of the characters and strong turns from the cast. Sessa is a newcomer who makes a name for himself here as a neglected teen, and Randolph will break your heart as a mother who masks her sadness by always carrying herself with grace behind a brave face. This is Giamatti’s stellar moment, though, as he gives the performance of his career as a lonely intellectual — a role that’s tailor-made to his strengths. The flawed protagonists are all sympathetic, everyone here is hurting, and although it sounds cliché, they find a pure sense of strength and companionship in each other.
Payne directs Hemingson’s script with a knowing tenderness that emanates a deep understanding of the material. There’s just the right balance of melancholy and humor, which makes the film feel painfully honest as well as sentimental and touching. It’s like a hug for those who really, really could use one.
The film looks and feels like a time capsule from the 70s, with nostalgic, grainy-textured cinematography and purposeful song choices for the soundtrack that work in tandem to set the tone. This is the kind of movie you’ll want to make an effort to see in an actual theater rather than streaming at home on the couch.
From the mutual respect between a teacher and his student to recognizing the possibilities that the future could hold, this film spoke to me on the deepest level. Bittersweet, hopeful, and poetic, there is just so much to love about “The Holdovers.”
