The Holdovers
"There’s nothing new in human experience, Mr. Tully."
This week’s Christmas film is The Holdovers, though not necessarily a Christmas classic. I watched this for the first time earlier this year when I was watching all the Oscar Best Picture nominees before the ceremony in March, and I instantly loved it. It’s certainly similar to Dead Poet’s Society, but it has enough originality to set itself apart and for Da’Vine Joy Randolph to take home the Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role.
Though the film also takes place at a New England boarding school, while Dead Poet’s Society was set in 1959, The Holdovers takes place over a decade later, from late 1970 into early 1971. Paul Giamatti’s character, Paul Hunham, is also a much less kind and welcoming teacher than Robin Williams’ John Keating. Nonetheless, his bond with Dominic Sessa’s Angus Tolley was as endearing as Keating’s bond with his students and was made stronger as the film focused on only one student rather than an entire class.
Parental Neglect
Dead Poet's Society and The Holdovers share a common theme of parental neglect as the film explores how children at the wealthy boarding school who may appear to have it all actually lack a lot when it comes to familial love and affection. Sending their sons to boarding school sets them up for great opportunities in life, but it's also an escape, a way to not have to be bothered with actually parenting them. Angus is initially supposed to go home for Christmas until his mother calls at the last minute to tell him she and his new stepfather have decided to spend the holiday on their honeymoon, leaving him at Barton under Paul Hunham's supervision. Later, his classmate Jason's father comes to pick everyone up for a ski trip.
Unfortunately, Angus' mother doesn't answer the phone to give permission for him to go, so he's left as the only student to spend Christmas at Barton. To me, this is even worse than when Angus' mother calls to tell him he can't come home anymore. All she had to do was answer a quick phone call, but her severe neglect of her child left him alone at Barton with only his teacher and a few other staff members. The Holdovers isn't simply a film about a student bonding with his teacher but a student finding the kind of love and affection in his teacher that the average teenager gets from their family. One scene that I love is when Mary Lamb, the school's chef, points out to Paul that while these children may appear to be very privileged, he doesn't actually know what's going on in their lives, and any child who is left alone at Christmas isn't as lucky as they may seem.
“You don’t tell a boy that’s been left behind at Christmas that you’re aching to cut him loose, that no body wants him, what the fuck is wrong with you?”-Mary Lamb, The Holdovers.
This is later confirmed when, on Christmas morning, Angus' mother and stepfather mail him a Christmas card with money in it, proving exactly the message Mary was conveying. We can't ignore that growing up wealthy and never having to worry about money is a great privilege. We also can't ignore that money is and never will be a replacement for love. Angus and anyone else in his situation, despite what they might say, would undoubtedly choose present parents over wealth. It's easy to wish for more money every Holiday season, whether as a gift or as a way to buy other people gifts, but watching this film brings awareness to the truth that everyone should be grateful even if they have just one loved one to spend the holidays with.
Grief
If The Holdovers wasn't heavy enough with its other themes, Mary has a tragic story to tell of a grieving mother who lost her son, Curtis, a former Barton student, to the Vietnam War. Mary shows many signs of being incapable of moving on from her son's passing. She can't go home for Christmas because she feels like she'd be abandoning him since Barton was the last place they had been together. At a Christmas Eve party, Mary stands alone by the record player, playing music that reminds her of Curtis before breaking down in the kitchen and having to leave.
However, even though Mary pushes people away and remains in solitude, she doesn't let what happened to her make her cold toward other people. She still enjoys her friendship with Paul, and she's able to show compassion for others, like Angus, and encourages Paul to do the same. Angus may come off as a snob, but she knows from her own loss that he is suffering from loss in many ways in his own life, especially at Christmastime.
Little by little, we see Mary come to life again. She spends Christmas Day with her younger sister, who is expecting a son. In a heartwarming scene, she brings Curtis' baby clothes to the new nursery, passing them forward to her sister. This, to me, signifies her finally moving forward from Curtis' death. I specifically like the phrase "moving forward" because there is no way to ever "get over it" when it comes to death. Someone once told me you never do get over it when someone you love dies; you just move on.
You move on because you have to, and that's what Mary does. I love that as much as Paul and Angus help each other, they help Mary, too. She learns to open up to love again as she accepts the love given to her by the school's janitor, Danny. She learns to enjoy life again, specifically in scenes like the New Year's Eve gathering at her house. All of this was portrayed so brilliantly and authentically by Da'Vine Joy Randolph, who, through every second of her performance, earned her Academy Award.
Paul Hunham
Paul is incredibly tough on his students and seems to hold a deep resentment for them because of their privilege. This keeps him in a cycle of belittling his students while they disrespect him and show little interest in his teachings. It’s also hinted that Paul is struggling with alcoholism throughout the film; though never confirmed, it seems to be the case. As we learn to have compassion for Angus, a rich kid who is actually deeply neglected, we also learn to have compassion for Paul. We see him struggle in many ways, not only with drinking but with making connections with others. Paul knows a lot of historical facts, as he’s a history teacher, and it’s his favorite topic to bring up to strangers he meets. Unfortunately, they often find it unsettling, given he doesn’t have great social skills, so he just blurts them out of nowhere.
“Before you dismiss something as boring or irrelevant, remember, if you truly want to understand the present or yourself, you must begin in the past. You see, history is not simply the study of the past. It is an explanation of the present.”-Paul Hunham, The Holdovers.
Paul doesn’t have much of a life outside of teaching, and while he claims to enjoy his solitude, this doesn’t seem to be the case. When he meets Lydia, and she invites him to her Christmas Eve party, he’s excited to attend, and through their connection, it’s evident he longs to be loved. That’s why we can see such great disappointment on his face when it turns out that Lydia has a boyfriend. It’s also why he likes spending so much time with Mary and actually grows to enjoy the time he spends with Angus. And why, while Angus clearly needs him for the Holiday season, Paul needs Angus too. I like movies that dive into the nuance of the world. There is no villain in this story, even if neither Angus nor Paul seem like great people at the start. They’re both humans: one is a frustrated teacher who never lived up to his potential, and the other is a student with great potential who just happens to have a difficult home life.
Angus & Paul
The bond between Paul and Angus is a testament to what happens when two vastly different people, who might not initially get along, come together to understand each other, learning they actually have a lot more in common than they thought. There are so many touching moments between the two, from the early forming of their relationship when they lie to keep each other out of trouble to the much more intense things like Paul opening up to Angus about how he was kicked out of Barton as a teenager and Angus letting Paul in on the situation with his father. A major turning point for the two comes in an emotional scene after Angus visits his father in the mental institution. He tells Paul about his fears that he’s going to end up like his dad, but his teacher reassures him: “You are not your father. You are your own man.”
However, one of my favorite moments between the two happens in the hotel room when they visit Boston. The scene happens so quickly and is done with little dialogue, but it is immensely powerful. When Angus drops his Librium pills, revealing he takes medication for depression, Paul shows interest but lets it go, as it’s obvious Angus doesn’t want to talk about it. When Angus goes into the bathroom and shuts the door, Paul goes over to his bag and pulls out his own bottle of Lithium pills. The scene ends here. This was such a perfect way to evoke emotion and bring the characters together. It is also so telling of the society we live in. Everyone carries secrets they are deeply ashamed of, not realizing how many people around them are carrying those same secrets.
There was a time when no one talked about mental health the way they do today; this is certainly true of the 1970s time period in The Holdovers. As soon as the floodgates opened, it seemed like everyone was admitting that at some point in their life, they had struggled with depression, anxiety, or another form of mental illness. That’s why I find this scene so powerful; they were both keeping their diagnosis a secret from each other, not knowing that it was actually something they had in common. It’s these moments–spending Christmas and New Year’s together, learning to open up about fears and past regrets–that bring us to our ending, which seems to mimic John Keating’s fate in Dead Poet’s Society.
“There’s nothing new in human experience, Mr. Tully. Each generation thinks it invented debauchery or suffering or rebellion, but man’s every impulse and appetite, from the disgusting to the sublime, is on display right here all around you.”-Paul Hunham, The Holdovers.
Paul takes the fall for Angus when his mother threatens to send him to military school for going to see his father over break, disrupting his routine and causing him to believe he can come back home. As a result, Paul Hunham is fired, and Angus gets to stay at Barton. It’s not just that Paul takes the blame, but the kind things he says about Angus that make the ending so powerful, even if it wasn’t that shocking or unique. Paul says things about Angus that he never would have said at the start of the film. He compliments his potential while also acknowledging how much of a mischievous “pain in the ass” he can be. Their bond is solidified at this moment not only because Paul stands up for Angus but also because, through his experience, he realizes he was never really happy working at Barton.
Paul Hunham gave Angus the love and attention he needed throughout Christmas break, and in return, Angus gave Paul freedom. While we don’t find out what happens to Paul after leaving Barton, I assume he goes on to write the book he lied about earlier in the film. I hope that he goes on to live a fulfilling life and understands that being wealthy and successful is not the key to happiness. I believe he found a greater sense of happiness and fulfillment than he’d ever known during his Christmas break with Angus and Mary.
Now I want to watch it!
Perfect read this morning :)