The Holdovers

Ah, The Holdovers, the film that asks: “What if Dead Poets Society had less poetry and more miserable people stuck together over Christmas?” Directed by Alexander Payne (Sideways, The Descendants), this film takes the classic “grumpy old guy softens up” formula, marinates it in 1970s melancholy, and serves it up with just the right balance of heart, humor, and existential dread. And you know what? It works. It works really well.

In a world where holiday movies tend to be sugar-coated, overstuffed, and aggressively cheerful, The Holdovers offers something refreshingly bitter and unexpectedly touching. It’s like that one stiff drink at a Christmas party that helps you tolerate everyone else’s forced holiday cheer—except this one actually has substance.

Paul Giamatti: Grumpy Old Man Extraordinaire

Paul Giamatti plays Paul Hunham, a crusty, delightfully unpleasant history teacher at a fancy New England prep school who seems to take personal joy in making teenagers miserable. His students hate him, his colleagues avoid him, and his general demeanor suggests he was born in the wrong century. When fate (and a school administrator who clearly enjoys ruining lives) forces him to stay behind during winter break to babysit the unfortunate students who have nowhere to go, Hunham greets the news with all the enthusiasm of someone who just found out they have jury duty on Christmas Eve.

Giamatti is in peak “lovable curmudgeon” form here, channeling the kind of energy that makes you laugh one second and feel kind of bad for him the next. He’s the guy who’d rather be reading about ancient Mesopotamian trade routes than making small talk, and honestly, who can blame him?

Meet the Misfits

Of course, a film like this doesn’t work without a worthy foil, and that comes in the form of Angus Tully (newcomer Dominic Sessa, who is so good it’s borderline annoying). Angus is the classic “smart but troubled” kid who masks his pain with sarcasm and a well-practiced eye roll. Left behind at school due to circumstances that are more depressing than funny, he quickly becomes Hunham’s reluctant companion in holiday misery.

Then there’s Da’Vine Joy Randolph as Mary, the school’s head cook and the true heart of the film. Mourning the recent loss of her son in Vietnam, she brings warmth, depth, and a much-needed reality check to the two privileged knuckleheads she’s stuck with. Her performance is so good it practically demands an Oscar nomination, and if the Academy snubs her, we riot.

A Movie That Smells Like Cigarettes and Old Books

If there were an Oscar for “Most Authentically 1970s Aesthetic,” The Holdovers would win in a landslide. From the grainy film stock to the muted color palette, everything about this movie screams “found in a dusty box at your uncle’s house.” Payne doesn’t just set his film in the ‘70s; he makes it feel like it was actually made then. There’s no aggressive nostalgia, no winks to modern audiences, just an immersive, lived-in world where people smoke indoors, drink scotch like it’s water, and passive-aggressively insult each other with perfect grammar.

So, Is It Any Good?

Yes. It’s very good. The Holdovers is one of those rare films that manages to be cynical and heartfelt at the same time. It takes its time, lets its characters breathe, and never forces sentimentality down your throat. Instead, it earns every emotional moment, which is a minor miracle in a time when most movies prefer to beat you over the head with orchestral swells and teary-eyed monologues.

It’s also funny. Not in a “big belly laugh” kind of way, but in the way that comes from sharp dialogue, great performances, and the sheer absurdity of three very different people being stuck together in a giant, empty school over the holidays. It’s the kind of humor that sneaks up on you, the kind that makes you chuckle while simultaneously appreciating how miserable everyone is.

Final Verdict: A Holiday Classic for the Cynics

If you love holiday movies but hate how saccharine they usually are, The Holdovers is your antidote. It’s smart, poignant, and anchored by three stellar performances. It’s the rare film that understands that not everyone gets a picture-perfect Christmas—but sometimes, just maybe, a little unexpected kindness can go a long way.

Final Verdict: 4.5 out of 5 passive-aggressive history lectures.