Right now, the main contenders for the TIFF people’s choice award seem to be “The Holdovers,” “Hit Man” and “American Fiction.” I believe Alexander Payne’s ‘Holdovers’ will. It’s an infectious crowd-pleaser.
In a nutshell, what “The Holdovers” signifies is a back-to-the-basics approach for director Payne, albeit done in a very mainstream, comfort-food type of fashion. It’s far from Payne’s best film, but an immensely likeable one.
The lack of risk-taking is replaced by a crowd-pleasing formula that mixes drama and comedy in very humane fashion. It’s the type of easy to watch film that could easily become a staple on television during the holidays.
Another reason to celebrate “The Holdovers” is for the return of Paul Giamatti, in a lovely performance as a curmudgeon professor at a New England prep school. His Paul Hunham is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit a brainy student (newcomer Dominic Sessa).
The school’s head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), is also there. A sudden road trip occurs, including a hilarious stop at a house party. It all ends with hard-earned earnestness and the kind of spirit that infuses some of Payne’s best work.
The Holdovers, set in the ‘70s, getting the period details right, is a film about class, race, grief and family, not to mention entitlement — most of the students at the college are white and well-off. However, what I liked about this film was the effortless way it entertains.
We’ve seen this story before — the hard-nosed professor and difficult student, clashing head to head until they finally realize that, gee, they have more in common that they first thought. This doesn’t break new ground for Payne, but it’s gorgeously shot, has a retro ‘70s vibe and goes down fairly easy.