The Holdovers would be among my favorites of 2023, a refreshing difference from the superhero flicks, franchise movies.

The movie revolves around Paul Hunham( Paul Giamatti) a strict, no nonsense classics teacher at Barton Academy, a boarding school in New England, who is hated by students as well as fellow teachers for his attitude. His headmaster Dr.Woodrup hates him for flunking the son of a prominent senator, who is also a prominent donor.

As students leave for the Christmas break, 5 students are left behind at campus for various reasons, and as punishment Hunham is supposed to supervise them during that period. The students include Angus Tully( Dominic Sessa) whose mom is on a honey moon trip with her new husband. And giving them company is Mary Lamb( ) the cafeteria manager whose son Curtis a student of Barton’s was killed in the Vietnam War.

In a way the movie is similiar to flicks like Goodwill Hunting, Half Nelson, Finding Forrester exploring the teacher- student relationship. The relationship between the 3 characters is beautifully etched, Hunham a loner, living in his own world, passionate about ancient history, Angus like any youth wanting to break free and Mary coming to terms with the loss of her son.

Alexander Payne has always been good at exploring human relationships be it the bonding between 2 friends in Sideways, or the foster dad bonding with his adopted son in About Schmidt or the father son bonding on a road trip in Nebraska.

The depiction generates the right amount of warmth, without getting overtly sentimental or melodramatic. Just take the scene at the Christmas party where Mary breaks down remembering her son, does not go over the top, yet you feel her grief so well.

It might not appeal to everyone, with it's very leisurely narration, I had watched this in a near empty theater. I found it to be a soothing breeze, one which you just soak in, the comedy too is more genteel.

Though Paul Giamatti lost out on the Oscar, his performance is brilliant, as the cranky teacher with a sensitive core.

Da'Vine Joy Randolph is first rate as the mother coping with the loss of her only son, trying to conceal it beyond a stoic demeanour.

And Dominic Sessa in his debut movie is first rate, as Angus Tully, wonderfully conveying the angst of a youth, with his own personal issues, hope to see more of him.