The Holdovers

Yesterday I was able to see an early screening of The Holdovers at the Broadway and I absolutely loved it!  It is definitely one of my favorites this year!  An unpopular and curmudgeonly teacher at a prestigious New England prep school named Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) is forced to remain at school over the Christmas break to supervise the students who are not able to go home, or the "holdovers," as punishment for failing the son of a prominent donor.  Several students and staff remain behind but, eventually, they all find somewhere to go except a depressed and acerbic 15-year-old named Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa) and the head cook, Mary Lamb (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), who is mourning the recent death of her son in Vietnam.  At first the three of them, who are each struggling with their own inner demons, clash with each other but, after a series of misadventures, they form an unlikely bond.  Angus helps Paul make peace with his past and Paul helps Angus see a future for himself while the two of them help Mary get through her first Christmas without her son.  I've heard many critics say that this is the type of movie they don't make any more and I definitely echo that opinion.  It is set in the early 1970s and it looks like it could have been made then with a grainy film aesthetic and amazing production design (I loved the retro studio logo at the beginning) but, more than that, it is a character-driven drama about flawed people that used to be much more prevalent in that decade.  I loved all three of the main characters, especially Mary because she took the job serving ungrateful and entitled students so that her son could get a good education only for him to end up going to Vietnam but then she sees beyond the privilege when she gets to know one of the students.  I wish that her character had been explored more fully but I really appreciate the care with which the mentor-student relationship is portrayed (particularly a scene where Paul explains why it is important to study history).  It is very heartwarming and affecting but there are lots of little moments that are quite funny (I laughed out loud multiple times).  Giamatti is brilliant as always and Randolph steals every scene she is in but I was very impressed with newcomer Sessa because he has a very striking screen presence and more than holds his own with the two more experienced actors.  This is a movie that I can see myself watching over and over again and I highly recommend it.