The Holdovers Movie Review
The Holdovers is a consistently smart, funny movie about people who are easy to root for and like the ones we know. Its greatest accomplishment is not how easy it is to see yourself in Paul, Angus, or Mary. It’s that you will in all three. David Hemingson’s script is about those wonderful turns in our lives when a stranger can shift us off in a new direction that we hadn’t considered and how they can come long after we think we’re done adjusting.
Director Alexander Payne knows how to create an artful film, and The Holdovers is no exception. It’s at once indie and art-house while simultaneously being mainstream and easily accessible; in short, it’s a film for everyone that actually feels like a genuine crowdpleaser instead of a pandering mess.
Moreover, Payne bounces back from the disastrous ‘Downsizing’ by reuniting with the star of arguably his most beloved film, ‘Sideways.’ Paul Giamatti gets his richest part in years as Paul Hunham, a brutal professor at the prestigious Barton Academy in the early ‘70s. Hunham is generally disliked by students and staff, although a colleague named Lydia (Carrie Preston) does make the grumpy old man Christmas cookies.
Through a series of events, the holdovers this break end up being pretty much just Paul, a student named Angus (Dominic Sessa in a breakout role), and the head cook Mary (Da’Vine Joy Randolph). They’re three people at very distinct chapter breaks in their lives, but they will influence each other in a heartwarming and genuine way.
Furthermore, Hollywood has a long history of stories of ‘makeshift families that learn something,’ but then why does ‘The Holdovers’ feel so fresh? It’s probably because it’s been so long since one of these stories felt this true. Payne and his team recognize the clichés of this life lesson, but they embed them with truths that will always be timeless.
The Holdovers is the epitome of a feel-good Christmas movie. It’s got heart, humor and an aesthetic sense so well-cultivated you’ll feel like you’ve walked into the year 1970. Cute and touching if not laugh-out-loud hilarious, The Holdovers is a thought-provoking dramedy for viewers seeking a dialogue-driven movie with a throwback.
This Christmas-themed gem doesn’t hold back on the drama, delivering a thoughtful blend of comedy, coming-of-age storytelling, and a touch of romance – all wrapped around a very raw, human plot-line that virtually everyone can relate to.
This movie is a beautifully crafted piece of nostalgia that feels lifted right out of the late sixties/early seventies, worth seeing for its playful homage to a very specific slice of cinema history, for its three lead performances, and for a few very good scenes that come before the conclusion.
In addition, this is a high-quality movie – from the impeccable acting to the beautiful on-location cinematography to the relatable, thought-provoking plot, every element is executed with pinpoint precision and finesse; it’s a testament to the art of storytelling on the silver screen.
Lastly, I would’ve liked a touch more romance; yes, there was romance here, but a bit more would’ve pushed me over the edge into 10 out of 10 territory. Besides that, this is basically a perfect film, one that I loved, and one that has become one of my favorite movies of the year.
The Holdovers is a movie everyone can enjoy with endearing characters who share with us our moments about loneliness peppered with the possibilities of love and offers a thoughtful exploration of human relationships set against the backdrop of a bygone era. It provides the feeling of something destined to become a classic.
Critical Reception of The Holdovers
The Holdovers is a strong and warm-hearted piece that gives actors roles with powerful lines, without any reliance on flashy editing and being overwhelmed by special effects. The story is simple: three people get stuck for the Christmas holidays in a boarding school.
Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers isn’t merely set in 1970 but pretends to be from 1970, in subject and form. Paul Giamatti is outstanding in Alexander Payne’s darkly comic, melancholy, but uplifting drama.
The dialogue rolls off the characters, elevating their distinctiveness and humanity. Yet as fluid as the writing is, the performances bring each character to life.
All of this doesn’t capture how consistently funny “The Holdovers” is from beginning to end. Payne leans into Giamatti’s irascibility in the early scenes in hysterical ways that make it more powerful when those walls start to fall.
Let’s just get this out of the way now – when it comes to writing this review, I’m probably a little bit biased (and a little bit drunk, currently, but that’s besides the point). You see, I have an affinity for indie coming of age movies, and ‘The Holdovers’ is basically an indie coming of age film, so it may – or may not – come as a surprise to you that I absolutely adored this picture.
I am genuinely looking forward to rewatching this, and I can’t wait until it becomes closer to Christmas so I can view this on my own TV, cuddled under blankets, with a glass of whiskey, and bask in the absolute heartwarming experience that is ‘The Holdovers.’ My recommendation: Do yourself a favor and watch this as soon as you can – you won’t regret it.
Themes and Messages in The Holdovers
The Holdovers features one of my favorite storytelling themes; that of broken people finding one another. It weaves themes of loneliness, the eternal search for belonging we all feel, and a nuanced definition of family that gains shape as we connect. However, instead of helping to mend each other, Paul, Angus, and Mary give each other the space and belief that they can mend themselves. While one character is grieving, another is lost, and the other is afraid. Both Paul and Angus are stunted youths of sorts, and their forced pairing gives way to an unexpected coming-of-age tale for both of them. Meanwhile, Mary’s best moments come when she’s by herself. Free from her cooking and managing duties, the times when she’s forced to be alone with her grief are when she’s at her most open as a human being.
Style aside, it’s the characters that make The Holdovers as involving a film as it is. Each of the three has accepted the notion that society has written them off and made each of them into a stereotype. But Paul, Angus, and Mary are such richly drawn portraits of the kinds of people found in the real world with great idiosyncrasies and hidden depths that no one would see unless they stopped and looked closely. These are people whose fears don’t have to do with loneliness or being misunderstood. Instead, it’s the suspicion that where they are in the current moment is the most the universe has to offer them.
Additionally, the movie’s tone is a wonderful blend of both poignancy and humor, with all of its moments evolving organically. Meanwhile, the narrative structure adopts a free-flowing sensibility, allowing the story to travel where it naturally should rather than hitting expected plot points. The Holdovers also proves itself to be a worthwhile echo of the times through the sense of isolation and uncertainty felt by people who are simply existing in the only ways they know how.
In today’s landscape, it seems that a film experience isn’t considered complete or whole unless the audience watching can relate to the characters on the screen. In 2023, characters must be relatable, likable, and possess no flaws that might be considered dark or ugly to be sure that audiences reward them with sympathy. But The Holdovers doesn’t ask for audience sympathy. Instead, what director Alexander Payne and writer David Hemingson are asking for their characters is empathy; empathy for them as people who carry with them complexities both exposed and hidden.
There’s something so incredibly charming, genuine, and intimate about this tale of three lost souls who find each other and themselves during the most emotional time of year that I fear would be diluted and lost if exposed to a widespread audience. If there’s one lesson to be gleaned from the film, it’s one that I’ve personally clung to down the past few years — we are, and always will be, more alike than we are different. The trick is finding those similarities.
Moreover, many times, our families are dysfunctional. Not in the cutesy Christmas comedy way, but in the heartbreaking, I don’t belong here way. Many people are alone at Christmas and feel castigated for not having a partner or children to gather around them during the holiday season.
The writing, the light, everything is so perfectly understated as to reinforce the film’s powerful message: that life goes on. That you are capable of survival, of change, of growth despite tremendous adversity. It addressed questions like am I the sins of my parents?, am I the sum of what I’ve lost?, how the fuck do you laugh and play music after a tragedy?
Interestingly, I liked The Holdovers as a Christmas movie precisely because it didn’t cite the same merry, empty ideology that ‘despite your uncle’s toxic traits, and your perv brother-in-law or whatever, Christmas can be wonderful if you suck it up and embrace the kookiness’. I think that’s bullshit, so I was glad they didn’t tell me that.
Lastly, one of the most prominent themes in The Holdovers is the strength that emerges from diversity. The characters in the film represent a spectrum of talents, experiences, and perspectives, mirroring the real-world complexities of modern organizations. Without giving away too much, the conclusion of The Holdovers is about one member of this makeshift family sacrificing their own welfare to pay for the real or perceived sins of another. It is a fitting end for a film that occurs over Christmas. Ultimately, The Holdovers, at its core, is a film about the impermanence of youth and the grief that accompanies its passing – and this is where it shines.
Character Analysis in The Holdovers
Paul Giamatti plays Paul Hunham, an up-tight classics professor who is tasked with watching over Angus Tully over Christmas break. The lonely teacher has spent most of his life at Barton, with him being despised by his students until the events of The Holdovers. Initially, the character starts off strict and confrontational; however, he evolves as he develops a bond with his student and the head cook, Mary Lamb.
Furthermore, Dominic Sessa, in his film debut, plays Angus Tully, a student at Barton who discovers that he will be staying at Barton over Christmas break due to his parents going on vacation. Initially portrayed as a miserable rebel, Tully’s character undergoes significant growth throughout the film as he warms up to Hunham and Mary Lamb, forming an unlikely bond with them.
In addition, Da’Vine Joy Randolph plays Mary Lamb, the head cook at Barton who decides to stay at the school over Christmas due to her grieving the loss of her son in war. Throughout the film, Mary acts as a reconciling force between Hunham and Tully, bringing the trio closer together by the end of the film.
Moreover, Paul Giamatti describes Mr. Hunham as a haughty, dismissive character, an irritable prep school teacher who relishes his meanness in the classroom. He takes pleasure in being an ass and embodies the type of British schoolmaster who conveys ideas through a kind of harsh cruelty. However, Giamatti emphasizes that underneath Hunham’s off-putting demeanor, he is not a bad guy and possesses a certain kindness, making him a complex character. This balance is important for the film’s tone, which revolves around empathy.
Additionally, Mr. Hunham’s self-importance is humorously undercut by Da’Vine Joy Randolph’s character, Mary. She sees through his facade and recognizes his flaws, establishing a subtle rapport that enhances the dynamic between them. This interaction adds depth to Hunham’s character, illustrating that while he is not a bad person, he is still deeply flawed and in need of growth.
Furthermore, Giamatti notes that Hunham learns to care about two specific individuals, rather than undergoing a radical transformation. This incremental change reflects a desire for freedom that he is not fully aware of, adding complexity to his character arc. The film portrays this development as believable and nuanced, rather than a sudden shift in personality.
Next, Angus Tully is a character who stands out for his remarkable intellect and an unfortunate sense of isolation. Despite being one of Barton Academy’s brightest minds, his brilliance is overshadowed by an overwhelming sense of isolation that he feels. The thematic core of the film lies in a tête-à-tête where Paul assures Angus that he does not have to be his damaged father; that he is his own man. The not-very-buried implication is that Angus can be his own man in part by choosing Paul as his father figure; pick a new patriarch, become a new guy.
Importantly, the antagonist of ‘The Holdovers’ is not Mr. Hunham or even Angus’s parents. Instead, the antagonist of this film is the act of giving in to one’s burdens, such as Angus’s affirmation of feeling unloved by his family, Hunham’s loss of hope for his students, or Mary’s lack of perseverance.
Finally, the character arcs are the most telling here. Angus’ anger and sadness collide with that of Paul when both experience similar shocking moments. ‘The Holdovers’ presents us with three broken souls attempting to find solace during a time in which they are isolated among themselves.
Cinematic Style of The Holdovers
The visual style of The Holdovers plays a crucial role in creating its nostalgic and timeless feel. Eigil Bryld was hired to capture the classic look of the movie, which was inspired by the 1970s.
Initially, Bryld and Payne planned to recreate this bygone 1970s aesthetic in The Holdovers by using traditional film stock that was used in that decade in Hollywood. He [Payne] really wanted it to look and feel and sound like it was a movie that was actually made in the 1970s,” Bryld says.
However, but ultimately, he chose to shoot The Holdovers digitally with an ARRI Alexa camera. Nevertheless, while using digital technology to film the movie, he also collaborated with colorist Joe Gawler to create a 1970s feel in post-production.
Furthermore, virtually every celluloid-related textural element one might expect is present, yet The Holdovers doesn’t stop there: it was conceived from the ground-up to, in Bryld’s words, “look like it was a movie found in the cans in someone’s garage.”
In addition, cinematographer Eigil Bryld embraced a particular spirit of freedom to give Alexander Payne’s vintage dramedy The Holdovers a distinctive 1970s vibe.
The Holdovers: Insights and Inspirations
The Holdovers is a consistently smart, funny movie about people who are easy to root for and like the ones we know. Its greatest accomplishment is not how easy it is to see yourself in Paul, Angus, or Mary. It’s that you will in all three. This review was filed from the premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Partly a conversion story, partly a study in the triumph of friendship over isolation, the moving comedy-tinged drama ‘The Holdovers’ (Focus) is an intimate, beautifully crafted film. The Paul Giamatti-led movie The Holdovers — equal parts funny and tragic — stuns with its performances, tone and message.
On the surface, ‘The Holdovers’ flirts with being a cloying comedy-drama about a found family. However, the movie is deeper and richer than that, mostly through the characterizations of Paul, Angus, and Mary, who are all more than just their archetypes.
Moreover, ‘The Holdovers’ takes place in New England somewhere, in 1970, at a tony, all-boys boarding school called Barton, where the students who remain during the holidays include a curmudgeonly teacher and an irreverent student.
Finally, directed by Alexander Payne and starring Paul Giamatti and Dominic Sessa, ‘The Holdovers’ finds its humanity in its depiction of how personal connections can flourish in unexpected circumstances.
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