Sophie Conner
Despite its unseasonably late release, Alexander Payne’s Christmas gem, The Holdovers, filled our hearts with a warm and bittersweet festivity this January.
Set in the 1970s and grounded in grainy nostalgia, The Holdovers delivers an unforgettable story laced with cosiness, comfort and hints of coarseness. This concoction of emotions makes the film feel like a strong drink on a cold winter’s night – it is satisfyingly warm and gentle, but also stings.
With exceptionally delicate performances from Paul Giamatti, Dominic Sessa, and Da’Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers emerges as a beautiful and tender tale, establishing the profound power of human connection. Rendered with “the texture of a great American novel” according to the Guardian, The Holdovers has successfully and seamlessly interwoven itself into the Christmas canon, destined to linger on in our hearts for a long time.
Synopsis
Set in a boarding school in New England, the film revolves around Paul Hunham (Giamatti), a grumpy, gritty, and cynical history teacher with a Dickensian flair. Unexpectedly, Hunham is requested to stay over during the Christmas break to supervise ‘the holdovers’ – the titular name representing the cohort of students/staff who cannot go home over the holidays.
Staying at the school alongside Paul is Mary Lamb (Randolph), the head cook and recently bereaved mother, and Angus Tully (Sessa), an irreverent, angsty, yet bright student. In an almost end-of-the-world-esque setting, three lost souls find comfort in one another as they grapple with unexpected friendships, loneliness, and how to let go of the past.
An Ode to Loneliness
The feeling of loneliness permeates The Holdovers like dense mist, enveloping each character harshly and relentlessly. Loneliness resides thick in the air, and you can almost feel its cold touch.
That said, all three characters harbour a rather bitter and poignant perspective of the world, brought upon through Mary’s grief, Angus’s abandonment and Paul’s broken dreams. Payne, however, portrays these feelings of loneliness through a human and fallible lens, focusing not only on the character’s vulnerabilities but also their flaws.
“The perfect homage to unlikely friendships”
Their loneliness and disappointment with the world is tangible. However, this tale serves as a human and raw representation of loneliness – it is presented as something that will not merely fade alongside the ‘power of friendship’, but rather, as something that they must acknowledge, master and manage.
It is with that in mind that the three lost souls provide a safe space for one another, to understand, feel, and navigate the depths of their past together. With the wise words of Hunham quickly becoming the central mantra behind this narrative: “If you truly want to understand the present or yourself, you must begin in the past.”
The Beauty of the Unconventional Friendships Trope
The Holdovers serves as the perfect homage to unlikely friendships – a toast to finding family in those you least expect. Despite their flaws and differences, the trio each tap into their grace, gentleness and kindness to find familiarity in each other’s experiences.
Their friendship is so heart-warming and wholesome that it will have you fighting off tears by the end credits. Particularly, there is a certain handshake at the end of this film, that feels more tender and emotional than any other affection I’ve seen in cinema.
The Holdovers is a gentle and subtle masterpiece, effectively capturing authenticity in the nuances of everyday life, specifically human beings at their most human.
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Featured image courtesy of Hide Obama on Unsplash. N0 changes have been made to this image. Image license found here.
sophieconner
Sophie is a freelance blog and copywriter, with an unwavering passion for breathing life into stories.