Released at the beginning of 2024, The Holdovers is the most recent film from director Alexander Payne. Starring Dominic Sessa in his breakout role as Angus Tully, the film is probably the best release from recent years for the winter season. It is a personal favourite to find comfort over Christmas.
The film takes place in New England prep school Barton Academy as it closes for Christmas, and ‘holdover’ students are left under the watchful eye of ill-tempered teacher Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti). When the holdover students get the chance to leave the school and go skiing, Angus doesn’t get parental permission and is left behind.
It is a classic story of an unlikely friendship between student and teacher as they get to know each other and realise their likeness, à la Dead Poets Society and Good Will Hunting. It is a very highly acclaimed film, receiving five Oscar nominations, one of which, Best Supporting Actress, went to Da’Vine Joy Randolph for her role as dinner lady Mary Lamb.
Despite this acclaim, I do find that the film flies under the radar for most people and is largely underrated. It is, in many ways, a perfect film to me, especially in the colder months.
Why pick The Holdovers?
To start with why the film is perfect for this time of year, we can look at the basics. The Holdovers takes place over the festive period, large parts of it revolve around Christmas. Snow covers the landscapes on screen, and the contrast between the stark white exterior and warm interior creates the cosy feeling that we can only find in the winter months.
The film is also largely character-driven. It is, at its core, about human interaction and finding understanding between people. Sure, everyone can recognise that this time of year does bring people together, and the film reflects this.
One of my favourite scenes in The Holdovers is when Mary, Paul and Angus sit below a crooked, poorly-decorated Christmas tree for their Christmas dinner, and share gifts. Despite initial turbulence, they have grown to understand each other and why they act the way they do. Over the course of the film, they are able to overcome grief and loneliness, finding themselves in each other.
Another incredible aspect of this film is its ability to balance comedic and emotional moments. The Holdovers has a certain wit about it in its dialogue. Each character has a charm that becomes more obvious as the film goes on. There are genuine moments that made me audibly laugh while watching them.
As well as this, à la Dead Poets Society and Good Will Hunting once more, it brought me to tears. It is hard for me not to cry at films so deeply rooted in emotion and human connection, I admit. However, before watching The Holdovers, I had never cried at a simple handshake.
So, why not pick The Holdovers as your choice of comfort film over this festive period?
Feature Image Credit: Focus Features
