USA • Comedy • Year: 2023 • Running Time: 133 mins
Language: English
Synopsis:
From acclaimed director Alexander Payne, THE HOLDOVERS follows a curmudgeonly instructor (Paul Giamatti) at a New England prep school who is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go.
The format may be unsurprising but there is nothing unsurprising about just how good and enjoyable this is… this is the kind of bittersweet, character-dialogue driven piece they just don’t do anymore.
Mark Kermode: Kermode and Mayo’s Take
Director: Alexander Payne
Nebraska (2013) • The Descendents (2011) • Sideways (2004)
Writer: David Hemingson
Main Cast:
| Paul Giamatti | Paul Hunham |
| Da’Vine Joy Randolph | Mary Lamb |
| Dominic Sessa | Angus Tully |
(for full cast list, additional technical information and reviews, please visit the Holdovers pages in IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes).
Film Notes:
The highly acclaimed US director Alexander Payne reunited with his Sideways actor, Paul Giamatti, for possibly his best film yet. It tells the story of a rather strict and very dour Classics teacher who has to chaperone a group of students who have been left to reside at their boarding school over the Christmas holiday. The warm, yet world weary cafeteria manager is also on hand to support. As events unfold the three central characters begin to warm to each other and to us as we learn more about their often deeply troubled lives. The authoritarian Professor (Giamatti) also learns more about himself and his own issues as the narrative progresses.
To say the film is a simple character study of a man who has been the perennial loser in his own life is to do it a great disservice. Giamatti is mesmerising as Paul Hunham, with a face that tells what he is feeling and thinking, with no need for words at all. He was rightly nominated for an Academy Award for this performance and was at one stage, the favourite to win. Da’vine Joy Randolph rightly won best supporting actress as Mary, the second chaperone. She serves as a conduit to the film as we may initially struggle to warm to the other characters. Mary also provides the voice of reason throughout, as arguments and mishaps begin to pile up.
This may not be the most festive film for Xmas but it is a heartwarming tale of acceptance and redemption that is sure to warm the hardest of hearts. It also consolidates Payne’s reputation as one of the most interesting directors currently working out of the US.