The Stream: The light comedy is hit or miss throughout.

The Big Screen: Da’Vine Joy Randolph is a standout in her limited scenes.

The Final Bill: A fine holiday movie that aims for the heart and has a few funny moments.

– Trip Fontaine
Director: Alexander Payne
Writers: David Hemingson
Stars: Paul Giamatti, Dominic Sessa, Da’Vine Joy Randolph
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Rating: R for language, some drug use and brief sexual material
Runtime: 2 hours 8 minutes
Production Companies: Miramax, CAA Media Finance
Platform: In theaters November 10, 2023
Notable Trailers: Napoleon, American Fiction, Argylle, The Color Purple, Drive-Away Dolls, Lisa Frankenstein

Hey, Streamers! Christmas and awards seasons are upon us, which means there will be new movies with Christmas themes and award aspirations.  The Holdovers is a movie that is Christmas-themed with awards aspirations. It has a warm, cozy feel despite its snowy setting; and it’s been getting strong notices for its cast and screenplay.  Here’s whether I saw the same promise.

The Holdovers is the latest release directed by Alexander Payne, who seems to be an Academy favorite. In this movie, we follow Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti), a grumpy classics teacher at Barton Academy, a boarding school in New England, who gets saddled with chaperoning the holdovers at the school during the holiday break. The holdovers are the students who must remain at the school during the holiday because they have nowhere to go, for whatever reason. While the break starts with 5 students, it ends up with only Paul, Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa), one of Paul’s brightest students, and Mary Lamb (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), the cafeteria manager, left for the remainder of the holiday. The trio wiles their time away at the deserted school dealing with their loneliness at the holidays. Grumpy, bah-humbuggy hijinks ensue.

The Holdovers is a nice movie with some warm and funny moments.  There is a distinct Dead Poet’s Society energy to this movie, but it is much lighter than that movie. Although this movie promotes itself as a comedy/drama, there is much more drama than comedy here. Alexander Payne movies seem to have the same tone across the board. I can’t say this is an innovative movie, but it does attempt to make a strong emotional impact. 

The cast does very well to portray the emotional beats of this story. Paul Giamatti brings his usual gruff energy to his character. It is great casting as he embodies Paul Hunham’s loneliness and caustic personality. He does become endearing as the story goes along and has some funny moments.  Dominic Sessa does well as Angus especially considering this is his first movie role. Unfortunately, his character borders on insufferable. The true standout is Da’Vine Joy Randolph. She is always a welcome presence, but her character doesn’t have much to do except be the voice of reason.  There is an interesting backstory to Mary Lamb, which Randolph portrays elegantly, but it feels a little shoehorned in.

Ultimately, The Holdovers is a nice holiday-themed movie. It has a good story with emotional resonance.  The cast works well together, and both Paul Giamatti and Da’Vine Joy Randolph give strong performances. Although the movie is not laugh-out-loud funny, it does have some lighter moments that will warm your heart. Grab a bowl of popcorn for an afternoon matinee.