Alexander Payne would seem to be a good match for Christmas, as his films explore relatable emotions but ease the pain with laughs right when we need them. This is seen in “Sideways,” about a crabby teacher who must open himself to romance; “The Descendants,” about a family dealing with the loss of the mother; and his magnum opus “Nebraska,” about family dysfunction passed down as if genetically.
In “The Holdovers” (2023), Paul Giamatti steps back into the scroogey teacher role. Paul Hunham could be Miles from “Sideways” if he took a plausible wrong turn, except that this film is set in 1970 at a classy prep school outside Boston.
It’s not a great film but it’s expectedly good, placed against a melancholy holiday backdrop wherein Paul, student Angus (Dominic Sessa) and cook Mary (“Only Murders in the Building’s” Da’Vine Joy Randolph, unfortunately trying for a Boston accent) must stay on campus over winter break. Angus has nowhere to go and the adults must watch the grounds; Paul is Angus’ reluctant but professional guardian for the two weeks.
“The Holdovers” (2023)
Director: Alexander Payne
Writer: David Hemingson
Stars: Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa
Writer David Hemingson – despite showing a wry sense of humor as a writer/producer on “Don’t Trust the B—- in Apt. 23” – doesn’t gift us with many laughs. There are some zingers, such as Paul’s creative parting shot to the headmaster, but this film is a minor tone poem about the small but sharp barbs of life.
A comedy not all that interested in comedy
Payne’s edge — so fine-tuned in another high school movie, “Election” – and his off-kilter emotionalism in the aforementioned classics are not quite present in “The Holdovers.” The technical quality is top-grade, though, as needle drops, technology, cars and architecture put us in 1970, with ’71 on the horizon.
I wonder if this was done with plain ole location design instead of computer alterations, like when Paul and Angus walk along a Boston sidewalk in front of era-appropriate storefronts. “The Holdovers” artfully starts with a 1970-style ratings card (for some bizarre reason, R instead of PG) and features remarkably short end credits for a modern movie.
It’s plausible that it could’ve been made with a skeleton crew, because after the handful of other “holdovers” go on a ski trip, we’re mostly left with the core trio. Angus can’t go on the trip because his mother is unreachable by phone to give permission.
A secretary on winter break in the school’s small town invites the trio for a Christmas Eve party, adding warmth to the melancholy isolation – one of the ways the film is about tonal spices rather than feasts of moments and conflicts.
Delicately, we learn the psychological problems of Paul and Angus as Hemingson contributes to the mentor-student genre, with both helping the other. He and Payne balance matters so Paul and Angus have plenty of flaws yet are likeable.
If God doesn’t look out for good people, they can look out for each other
Things like Paul’s natural fishy smell – due to a medical condition – make him cinematically sympathetic, but never does “The Holdovers” attempt to jerk tears. Paul is hated by his history students – whether deliberately or accidentally, he talks over their heads with his word choices – but he demonstrates politeness and kindness.
He’s a good enough person to deserve happiness, like the affections of that secretary, Lydia (Carrie Preston). When his slow romantic progress – huge for him – is shattered by Lydia kissing her suddenly appearing and unmentioned boyfriend, our wound breaks open with Paul’s.
Angus’ goodness comes through too, such as when he helps a younger holdover who has wet his bed. “The Holdovers” wants to earn its smiles, tears and laughs, not leaving Paul, Angus or Mary as stereotypes, even if it does tip its cap to the time period. Mary is grieving a son cruelly lost to Vietnam, the hurdle he had to clear to get to college on the G.I. Bill.
“Election” remains Payne’s most acerbic film, an instance of a director throwing punches at the absurdities of life. “The Holdovers” is a reversal wherein the absurdities of life strike back at, if not the director, then its characters. His films feature enough teachers that I wonder if Paul, et al, are filmmaker surrogates.
At any rate, smart but psychologically adrift people take their blows in this film. It’s never too late, though, even for Paul – and Payne, too, will eventually make another masterwork. But “The Holdovers” is merely a placeholder on his career path.