They often say they don’t make movies like they used to. Alexander Payne, the director of such small-scale comedy dramas as About Schmidt, Election and Sideways, has managed to do exactly that. The Holdovers is a bitter-sweet tale of three very different characters brought together during Christmas; we are lucky enough to watch them grow. Like the quiet dramas of the 1970s, this is an intelligent, witty and gentle movie that could easily fit into the timeline the film is set. This is a wonder.

Barton Academy in 1970, and the boarding school is breaking up for the Christmas holiday. With the boys heading home or on holiday, disgruntled classics teacher Paul Humham has to stay with those not going anywhere, or as they are known, The Holderovers. His companions are an angry young man, Angus Tully, abandoned by his mother and stepfather, who want a honeymoon, and Mary Lamb, the school cook who is dealing with the grief of losing her son. The three don’t see eye to eye, but two weeks is a long time to grow.

This is one of those films that works more as a character study in which these mismatched people power the narrative rather than vice versa. Setting the tone immediately with its crackly 70s-style grainy film stock (and a lovely touch using AA’s classification card) at the start, we are introduced to the school, a winter wonderland of snow and Christmas hymns. Payne, also using academy ratio (square screen for that authentic feel), gently breaks us into the world of the boarding school, with bullies and male hormones running riot, while following the traditions of the high table for the teaching staff and attending mass before escaping the confines of the educational establishment.

Humham is a teacher who lives for the rules, punishes his class for the slightest rule-breaking and marks low, as he hates these rich kids who think that money can get them a proper education. Already in the bad books of the head for marking one such child down, stopping him from attending University, even though their parents had paid a considerable amount of money into the school, he has been volunteered to stay. With a handful of students, he makes them follow the school timetable until one of his lots gets his father to pick him and the rest up for a skiing trip. All but Angus, whose parents cannot be contacted. From this point on, the battle of wills between Humham and Angus begins, with Mary Lamb in the middle to break them apart.

Payne skillfully allows the actors and the first-rate script by David Hemingson to do the work. He trusts them to take the audience on an emotional journey where we watch the antagonists go from feeling resentful to bonding over the holiday period. It’s also an understanding that everyone has their own stories, and what you see as face value is not necessarily the whole story. We listen to their conversations, and at every stage of the film, we learn more and more about them, from Humham’s difficulties with personal hygiene to the truth about Angus’s family to Mary’s heartbreak. By allowing us to join these characters on their journey, we feel closer to them.

It’s not all heartache, however. This film could easily be one of the most quotable in the future. The quips and one-liners crackle throughout. It also looks like being a massive Christmas favourite in the future, although it does feel weird watching it after the celebrations seem a long time gone.

The film has already been lauded with awards, and rightly so, mainly in the acting. Paul Giamatti, returning to work with Payne again after Sideways, is on top form. As Humham, this is a multilayered man who wants to be looked upon as a scholar of great merit but he hides some deep secrets about his past. Giamatti manages to switch from comic to tragic with a blink of his lazy eye (something brought up during the film). It’s one of his finest performances. As the grieving chef, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, best known as the cop in the TV series Only Murders In The Building, is magnificent. Her performance is full of warmth and yet brimming with sorrow. She is the favourite to walk away with a Best Supporting Actress award (having just won the Golden Globe), and it would be the right decision.

Finally, there is newcomer Dominic Sessa as Angus. This is a strong debut, and he holds his own with his co-stars with a performance that takes him from an angry young man to a total understanding of his companions. It is often nuanced, and his comic timing is perfect. This is a young actor to keep your eye on.

The Holdover is a beautiful experience. It might not look like the most fantastic movie in the trailer, but it is incredibly deceiving. This is cinema at its finest. It will make you laugh and cry, and you will want to stay with these characters long after it ends. I urge you to take a risk and see this fantastic movie. You won’t be disappointed. And then have a Miller, as it is the champagne of beers!

5 out of 5

Director: Alexander Payne

Starring: Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa, Carrie Preston, Brady Hepner, Ian Dolley, Jim Kaplan, Andrew Garman, Michael Provost, Naheem Garcia

Written by: David Hemingson

Running Time: 113 mins

Cert: 15

Release date: 19th January 2024