The Holdovers is a 2023 holiday comedy directed by Alexander Payne. It deals with a cranky professor who is stuck with a troubled student at a remote school over the holiday. Below is my The Holdovers (2023) movie review
When the movie begins we are introduced to Paul Hunham (played by Paul Giamatti). He is a cranky professor who does not like his students and goes out of his way to make their life miserable, even right before holiday break. He is not liked by others and he does not seem to care. Around him are a variety of different students. Some are nice, while others are what one would consider as troublemakers.
One big way the movie fails is when they get rid of ALL of these students and we are stuck with one of the troublemakers. In the end, it is all worth it as this particular student is very complex and troubled, but we are also stuck with him. If you don’t like his background, you will most likely not like the movie overall. He goes through many phases where he is unhappy, annoyed, frustrated, and eventually happy but also in some ways devastated. It was interesting to see him go through these emotions as we can see ourselves going through a similar spectrum of emotions if we are stuck in a place where we don’t want to be during a holiday season. He is not only stock, but in many ways lost and even unloved.
As the movie progresses, we get a lot of interaction between the professor, the student, and the cook who lost her son in Vietnam. They played off each other very well and genuinely felt like they had a good chemistry. It’s a tough time for anybody to be stuck in a place they didn’t want to be in. The filmmaker made sure to include some great cinematography shots of the cold weather outside. This provided a sense of being alone during a time when people are surrounded by loved ones. It also reinforced the idea that those who are around you might not be an ideal family. However, they can feel like your actual family if you are open to it.
Anyway, as the movie goes, the relationship gets strained and there is a good amount of arguments going on between the rebellious teenager and the professor. It culminates into an ending that is both sweet and sad that will tug at your heart strings. This movie has it all. It has a coming of age storytelling, a touch of romance, as well as a hint of comedy. It is all well done. Everything from Paul Giamatti’s performance to Dominic Sessa’s incredible portrayal of frustration is superbly done. It shows us how loneliness can eat us and how the past can get a hold of us and turn us into something that we don’t want to be.
At the end, I had a roller coaster of feelings going through me. I had instances where I felt alone during holiday so there were a lot of things the main character did or was going through that really spoke to me. It made me sad, happy, frustrated, and even angry at times. To me it was a perfect mix of ups and downs that made the movie really fun. Recommended to everyone.
Thanks for reading my The Holdovers (2023) movie review
