Why the Holdovers is a dark horse for this years Oscars
In 2004, Paul Giammatti and filmmaker Alexander Payne teamed up for Sideways, the tragicomic road movie that made Payne an Oscar winner and propelled Giammatti from a reliable character actor to a household name. Nearly twenty years later, the duo team up again for The Holdovers, a different kind of movie but one that produces the same kind of magic.
Set during December 1970, The Holdovers is set in prestigious New England boarding school Barton Academy. Giammatti plays Paul Hunham, a stern and confrontational Classics teacher who is disliked by students and faculty alike. This reputation means he is stuck with the task of supervising ‘the holdovers’, students who must stay on school property during the festive break. Through a series of unfortunate events, precocious student Angus (Dominic Sessa) ends up the only holdover. He and Hunham must survive each other, alongside grieving school cook Mary (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), and along the way learn to confront past pain.
There’s no denying that this is an old-fashioned kind of movie, and Payne leans into that fact. From the vintage studio ident to the soundtrack and cultural footnotes, the director wants to take you back to a different time. Evoking the touching sentiment of films like The Dead Poets Society or School Ties, this is a thoroughly human drama that doesn’t require an understanding of the time in order to be relatable. At its heart, it’s a film about loneliness, as three people wrap their struggles in tough outer shells. There’s moments of laugh-out-loud comedy, such as a ridiculous chase through an empty school, and breathtaking drama. As the plot reveals what caused that pain, there’s even more of a sense of attachment to this unlikely trio.
Sessa, in his first film role, delivers a performance that would make industry veterans jealous. Charismatic yet vulnerable, it’s amazing to think the young actor was discovered by the production, who were filming at the school where Sessa was a student. Like his teacher, you want to slap him at one moment, then give him a hug the next. He strikes up an incredible bond with Giammatti, who delivers the best performance of an already glittering career.
He’s a character who seems completely unsuited to education, and yet will remind you of at least one of your former teachers with his cutting remarks and disdain for shortcuts. Like his character in Sideways, Hunham is a good man whose strict principles have left him isolated. He’s a pleasure to watch, and he is only improved by Randolph. Mary could have been a flat, sassy supporting actor, but the Only Murders In The Building star infuses the character with raw grief that shakes the screen when it comes to the surface.
An uplifting wonder, The Holdovers doesn’t hold the same shock value as many of this year’s Oscar contenders. However, by telling a humble story full of passion, it stands alongside the best of the bunch.