By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
Nearly 20 years after the Oscar success of “Sideways,” Filmmaker Alexander Payne and actor Paul Giamatti reunite for another wonderfully entertaining story of human nature. “The Holdovers” is another lower budget gem that could easily be lost amongst the Thanksgiving blockbusters being released this week and next. At times hilarious, at times heartfelt, this is a coming-of-age story not to be overlooked.
Set during the 1970 holiday season in the New England area, Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) is a grumpy history teacher at an all-boys prep school. Nicknamed Walleye due to his lazy eye and constant fishy smell, Paul is despised by every student, fellow teacher, and headmaster at the school for his self-righteous arrogance and rigid adherence to his rules. When it comes time to assign a faculty member to stay at the school over the holiday break to babysit the holdover teens, the headmaster wastes no time to punish Paul with the undesirable assignment.
One such holdover is Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa), who has been abandoned at the school for the holidays so that his mom and new stepfather can have a romantic getaway. Annoyed that he has to spend the holiday break with classmates he doesn’t get along with, a depressing school cook named Mary Lamb (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) with a sad backstory, and a teacher he loathes, Angus goes out of his way to challenge Mr. Hunham in every possible way. However, as they spend more time together, they begin to realize there is more to the other than meets the eye.
Two-time Oscar winner Alexander Payne (“The Descendants” and “Sideways”) returns to form following his first feature film failure with 2017’s “Downsizing.” His directorial style is clearly evident in “The Holdovers,” with his natural affinity towards exploring human nature, both the good and the bad. His set-up is simple, a contest of wills between two stubbornly strong-willed people who start to show telling cracks in their façade the more that is revealed of their personal stories. As he’s done in the past, he focuses on dialogue driven scenes, using witty sarcasm to elicit plenty of laughter from start to finish.
Payne achieves authenticity in capturing the period with an almost degraded look to the film. Surprisingly, he actually filmed the whole movie digitally, and then added a grainy look in editing to give it the feel of an early 1970’s movie. He also avoided using sets and soundstages, opting for exclusively filming the entirety on location in Massachusetts. There was, however, a little redundancy in the scenes that slowed the pace and made the film drag in places that should have been whittled down in post.
Paul Giamatti is one of the more talented, underrated actors in the business and he delivers a top shelf performance as the curmudgeonly, antagonistic teacher. He brings an unrivalled intensity to this role as he does with every one of his roles and delivers his lines flawlessly, eloquently insulting his students with an expansive vocabulary that makes them hate him even more. He also adds a depth to his character that is hard to see at first behind his biting diatribes. When the audience finally does get to see this person of sadness and loneliness, it instantly invests them into empathizing with his character. It is a rather amazing and complicated portrayal that could finally yield his second Oscar nomination.
Dominic Sessa is an interesting story, because this is his first ever acting performance and it’s in such a prominent role. Despite having no previous on-screen experience, he relies on real life experiences as a student for Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts to achieve credibility. Dominic does a good job of concealing his inner turmoil and pain about his parents with his own brand of sarcastic remarks and behavior that have a way of getting under everyone’s skin. He brings a relatability to his character that makes viewers want to learn more.
Let’s not forget Da’Vine Joy Randolph, a hard-working actress who’s been grinding for the past ten years, most recently as the recognizable detective in Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building.” She plays an integral part in this movie as the school cook and mother to a former student who died while serving in Vietnam. Da’Vine brings much needed heart into this picture, and she performs with such a comfortable ease in the role that is disarmingly real. She is the catalyst for stripping away the defensive mechanisms of the two main characters, and viewers can’t help but smile every time she appears in a scene.
Looking for a film that focuses on a quality story, hilarious dialogue, and professional grade acting? Then look no further, “The Holdovers” is smart, funny, and purely entertaining. Even though the audience is predominantly made up of retirees, don’t be discouraged, it’s enjoyable for all ages except for children of course.
This movie earns:
ew.com
