'The Holdovers' review: Payne examines pain, mostly satisfyingly

Nov. 8—Maybe Alexander Payne simply stepped out of his comfort zone.

Known for well-received black comedies ("Election," "About Schmidt) and acclaimed character-driven comedy dramas ("The Descendants," "Nebraska"), Payne went extremely high-concept with 2017's "Downsizing," a film with some very clever ideas but one that didn't resonate with a lot of folks. (It has pretty lousy ratings on Rotten Tomatoes.)

His first film since then, "The Holdovers" — about the developing bond between a teacher at a New England boarding school and one of its students as they're stuck together at the school while almost everyone else is gone for winter break in 1970 — would seem to sit perfectly in Payneville. And that's before taking into consideration the cranky teacher is played by Paul Giamatti, star of Payne's beloved 2004 dramedy, "Sideways."

While perhaps not as strong as any of the aforementioned films, "The Holdovers," after being stuck in the snow for too much of its more-than-two-hour runtime, does eventually land in an emotionally satisfying place.

Once a student at Barton Academy, Giamatti's Paul Hunham is an adjunct professor of ancient history and is generally disliked by students and faculty alike. An eye issue has earned him the nickname "Walleye," and another condition causes him to emulate an unpleasant odor, increasingly so as the day wears on.

He loves what he teaches but not whom he teaches, muttering about "philistines" as he marks up papers. He is the kind of teacher happy to teach right up until the break — and to give his students plenty to worry about during it.

When another teacher invents a reason why he cannot watch the "holdover" students during the fast-approaching break, the duty falls to Paul, who has no family to visit anyway. Also, this is a punishment from Dr. Woodrup (Andrew Garman), the headmaster — and many years ago his student — for Paul giving a failing grade to a student who's high-profile father had endowed the school's gymnasium.

Paul need only to keep the five lads safe and in good condition during their days together, Woodrup says.

"And at least pretend to be a human being," the boss adds. "It's Christmas."

Not surprisingly, Paul clashes with the students, who run a wide range of ages, as he tries to make their time productive from an academic standpoint.

Soon, however, all but one is able to leave with the parent of one of them who agrees to take more than his own son on a ski trip. The lone remaining holdover is Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa), whose mother — off on a trip with her new man — can't be reached to give consent for her son to leave with the others.

And so Angus now faces a break without any peers, several days spent with Paul. Hooray.

Along with the nourishment she provides, Paul and Angus get some much-needed company from Mary Lamb (Da'Vine Joy Randolph). While Angus may not be looking for a mother figure during this time, Paul is happy to have a drinking buddy, the two enjoying mugs of whiskey as they pass time talking and watching "The Newlywed Game."

Each of the three is emotionally damaged, and their specific issues are revealed as Payne and screenwriter David Hemingson ("Kitchen Confidential") slowly peel back the layers as the story unfolds.

You feel the most for Mary, in part because of the loss she has suffered and in part because Randolph ("Only Murders in the Building") gives such a resonating performance.

That said, "The Holdovers" is most concerned with the developing bond between Paul and Angus as they travel a road chockful of potholes.

Giamatti ("Billions," "San Andreas") is, as you'd expect, charmingly curmudgeonly, and so we enjoy our time spent with Paul. However, the character feels a little underdeveloped; he seems to regret he hasn't been able to connect more with people throughout his life, but you never exactly sense he wishes he had a son — almost a prerequisite for the character given this specific situation.

On the other hand, that Angus is the way he is makes sense as we learn more about him and his past.

By the way, don't spend time while watching "The Holdovers" trying to remember where you've seen Sessa before. An actual student at a New England boarding school, he was chosen from hundreds of submissions and is making his screen debut. Given that, the actor has a pretty impressive screen presence. You'll understand why Paul is as frustrated with Angus as he is at times, but then Sessa flashes that wry smile ... and everything's all but forgiven.

We want to all but forgive the story's shortcomings — that Hemingson's background is in serialized storytelling and that "The Holdovers" is his first feature doesn't come as a surprise when you consider how herky-jerky the narrative is at times — but we can get only mostly there.

Payne, with some help from folky music of the day, gets a lot from his period setting, "The Holdovers" feeling as though it actually could have been made in 1970. That's not reason enough to see it, of course, but a little seasoning can go a long way.

At the end of the day, this movie feels a bit like, well, a holdover to the filmmaker's true return to form, but we'll take it all the same.

'The Holdovers'

Where: Theaters.

When: Nov. 10.

Rated: R for language, some drug use and brief sexual material.

Runtime: 2 hours, 13 minutes.

Stars (of four): 2.5.