"The Holdovers" Does Not Hold Up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                            Until Cillian Murphy won the Best Actor Oscar for "Oppenheimer," Paul Giamatti was clearly the front runner for the award.  While Dominic Sessa in the Supporting Actor category was being hailed as the greatest film find since, well, since Jennifer Jones, whom I watched yesterday, with the annual screening of "The Song Of Bernadette."

                               Indeed, such a fuss had been made over this film, I just had to see it.  Especially when one of my most astute film friends raved about, saying how it was such a tearjerker, and she cried in certain parts.  Now, girls, as you know, I love a good tearjerker.  But this was not it.

                                  "The Holdovers" benefits from beautiful location shots, and an atmosphere that captures not only academia, but the loneliness of being left behind at holiday time when others have gone home or on other travels.  It is a competently made film, well-acted, written and directed, but does it break any new ground?  Not at all.  With some omissions, this story could have easily been filmed in the late Thirties, with Spencer Tracy and Freddie Bartholomew, with either George Cukor, Victor Fleming, or Sam Wood directing.  There is nothing new here.  Maybe the prostitute scene, which is awfully funny, and the actress playing the role, Melissa McMeeken, has the choicest bit in the entire film!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                   As for Da 'Vine Joy Randolph, she was fine, but where was Octavia Spencer???????

                                     Alexander Payne and Giamatti have not done anything major since "Sideways," and that was 20 years ago.  Too bad they did not come up with something more original.  Sure, the reveals are touching, and the final scene, with the camera on Giamatti, is straight out of 1939's "Goodbye, Mr. Chips," but how is one supposed to feel?  He is not dying; rather, he was treated unfairly and is going on to an unknown chapter.  I get it, but it was not enough to shed tears over.

                                        The actors playing the Tully parents--Tate Donovan and Gillian Vigman--are the true villains of the piece, engineering the somewhat poignant/tragic ending to the story.  They are no better than the Murdstones in "David Copperfield," and I would not be surprised if the couple were based on this famous literary sibling team.

                                            Which is the central problem.  There are so many familiar tropes in "The Holdovers," it is amazing to me it was nominated for Best Original Screenplay.  What the hell was original about it?

                                              But make up your own minds, darlings!  Those on here know I love heart felt stories--though I refuse EVER to see "Bambi" again!!!!!!!!!--but something was lacking in this film.

                                              "The Holdovers" held my interest, to a point.  But it did not blow me away.

                                                 So few films these days do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!