Every holiday has its own selection of films you watch like clockwork and Christmas is no different. From Home Alone to Die Hard, everyone has a favourite Christmas go-to. That said, I’ve watched neither of the aforementioned – sorry Kevin! Don’t get me wrong, I’m not some elitist that finds all holiday movies banal, but I’ve never really had a favourite Christmas movie growing up. I just watched whatever was running on Film4 at the time.
Unless it made a strong impression on me, I’m not in the habit of rewatching movies. (Pixar’s Coco is one among few that I’ve watched more than twice, which says a lot in my books!) If I think really hard about it, maybe – and this is a big maybe – Love Actually might be in my top roster. But that’s just because I’m a sucker for big ensemble rom-coms. The Holiday starring Kate Winslet, Jack Black, Cameron Diaz and Jude Law is a close second when it comes to this category of cheesy Christmas films. Honestly, Hollywood doesn’t make these type of holiday flicks anymore. Now all we get are Netflix’s straight to streaming cookie cutter Hallmark movies or spin-offs/sequels to an existing franchise, they’ve exhausted to death as an easy cash grab. *coughs* Disney!
With all that said, Christmas 2025 was gonna be different. It’s been a special year, more so than any before it. It’s been a strange year too, especially the way my December had turned out. Without divulging too much of the personal, these two movies really resonated me this holiday season. And it’s not just because they were the only two I watched! (Allow me to contradict myself, as I did rewatch How the Grinch Stole Christmas this month, but Jim Carrey is simply too good a Scrooge trope to pass on!)
I hadn’t seen The Holdovers or Klaus before, so going into both films blind with nothing more than the synopsis, was a refreshing experience. Both films I’d merely heard of, but had no indication of its plot or characters – thankfully, the internet hadn’t spoiled them for me yet!
The newer of the two, I did recall seeing posters on the Tube when it was first released to theatres, but even then, I had no clue that The Holdovers was a Christmas movie. Thinking back now, I only recognised Paul Giamatti and had mentally tucked away the movie as a potential watch based on its old 70s look and setting. Doesn’t take that much convincing to get me to watch a movie really – at least for the first time! So, discovering the movie was on Netflix as I was haphazardly scrolling through my unrelated search results, brought it to my attention. In true ADHD fashion, I didn’t even watch the whole thing in one sitting. I was already watching something else at the time and the clock was ticking away waaay past midnight. It was my first official annual leave day I’d booked off for the Christmas season and I was determined to stay up and enjoy my new found freedom. (Not that I was sleeping much when I was still working and going into the office either – cursed insomnia!) In the end, between doomscrolling, keeping up my Duolingo streak before midnight came, and whatever other show I had on at the time, I decided to finally commit to the movie before me. I’d played ten or so minutes of the film earlier in the evening, but had switched over to the other show due to my indecisiveness. It was novel for me to start a film, switch over and actually return to it in the same sitting. But less about my restless mind, let’s get into the meat of this movie!
Alexander Payne’s 2023 The Holdovers follows three lost souls forced to spend the Christmas break together at a 1970 New England boarding school. Paul Giamatti is Paul Hunham, the miserly Classics teacher, who all the students loathe, not least because of his fishy odour. Da’Vine Joy Randolph is Mary Lamb, the cafeteria manager mourning her late son, who died while serving in Vietnam. Newcomer Dominic Sessa is Angus Tully, the main ‘holdover’ student, who’s been left behind – let’s be frank, abandoned – by his parents over the holiday break. Each character more tragic than the other, varying forces have brought them together on the whipping cold campus of the Massachusetts prep school.
Save for Mary and Tully, the pervading loneliness afflicting our motley crew is not self-inflicted. Mr. Hunham alone appears to be the only one enjoying a quiet, lonesome holiday with his books. At least that is how he would like to ideally spend the impending two weeks at the vacant school. Besides smart mouth rebel, Tully, there are four other students, who initially join him as holdovers. But by the end of the first act, they’ve managed to weasel out of a miserable holiday of forced study sessions and running laps in the cold at the behest of Scrooge Hunham. Indeed, he sounds frigid and completely unlikeable. However, there’s more to Paul Hunham than meets the eye. Maybe a fair assessment is all the grumpy teacher needs. He certainly reminds me of an old maths teacher I had in secondary school, who personifies this character from appearance to reputation! (Although, my real life teacher lacked the gumption and theatrics of Giamatti’s portrayal of a passionate but curmudgeonly educator).
While I’d like to believe I’m not too far removed from the high school experience, Angus Tully wasn’t the only character I found myself rooting for throughout the film’s run. I pray I’ll never have to experience the kind of loss Mary Lamb does in The Holdovers, but Randolph’s profound portrayal of a mother in mourning touched me deeply. Without giving away too much, her breakdown at the Christmas party leaves a huge impact on audiences. No wonder then did this role win Da’Vine Joy Randolph her first Oscar win for Best Supporting Actress. It dawns on me as I write this post, that the name of Mary Lamb really lends to the allegorical nature of her character arc. Her son, Curtis Lamb, was a Barton graduate as well. Unlike his privileged peers, however, Mary couldn’t afford to send him straight to college. Hence why he joined the war effort to get his education paid for, that is before his life was shortly cut. The sacrificial lamb sent to slaughter.
Quick history lesson: during the Vietnam war, black soldiers were disproportionately drafted to combat roles on the frontline versus their white counterparts. Due to systemic disparities like educational deferments – as noted in the movie – in 1965, black men made up 31% of combat troops at a population of only 12% nationwide.
Before I continue to spill the beans on this film, I urge you to go watch it for yourself. Aside from the conflict created from the contrived relationships, the political backdrop and the witty humour, the cinematography in this movie was so befitting! As expressed earlier, I had no recollection of this film in 2023, except for the vague image of the 70s its promotional materials reminded me of. And I didn’t even live through that decade, mind you! From Angus Tully’s shaggy locks to Mary Lamb’s drop-arm glasses, that apparently belonged to actress Da’Vine’s very own grandmother! Least to say, this film sat with me well after the last credit rolled onscreen.
Klaus was a less lonely watch. And what a coincidence… With loneliness being a prominent theme in The Holdovers, I’d somehow ended up watching that film in the wee hours of the morning, wrapped up on the sofa all on my lonesome. Sergio Pablos’ 2019 Klaus is an animation from the creator of… wait for it… Despicable Me ! I’d have never connected the two projects as from the same creator, but Pablos has range, that’s for sure. Klaus is his directorial debut, with him also writing the story, co-writing the screenplay and co-producing it.
It was the eve of Christmas Eve, when boyfriend and I had finally wrapped up our early Christmas roast dinner. (The making of which took terribly long and almost went pear-shaped before we finally somehow pulled it off, after many a blood, sweat and tears!) The promise of dessert was broken after feasting on thick slices of stuffed turkey joint, the crispiest and fluffiest rosemary and duck fat roasted potatoes, honey glazed carrots and parsnips, Yorkshire puds and even Brussel sprouts. I don’t know how, but we had just enough strength left to garner up the energy to do the clean up right after the indulgent meal. So, by the time all the mess was dealt with, the only thought I had was to crash in bed. Alas, we had previously agreed on watching a Christmas movie together before concluding the night. Despite my better judgment of needing a good night’s sleep, we put on a film. At least this time around, we successfully set up the big projector. Take every win you can get! (The last movie night was the aforementioned How the Grinch Stole Christmas, viewed on my iPad screen balanced precariously between our bellies and the duvet).
I hadn’t even picked out the film – he had! I was doing the thing, where I flicked through the endless number of options available, la di da, etc. as covered above! But boy am I glad I stayed up to watch it from beginning to end. With the exception of a few scenes here and there between that I missed when I had dozed off, I would give Klaus a solid 9/10. It was critically acclaimed too – picking up Netflix’s first Academy nomination for Best Animated Feature Film and winning a BAFTA for Best Animated Film, besides 7 Annie awards plus more! While there is often a misconception about animated films as strictly made for kids among naysayers, I’ll tell you now this adventure comedy stole my heart and had me aghast at the creepily morose children of the town of Smeerensburg!
Let me tell you more: a lazy, spoiled postman in training is banished from the big city to the remote Scandinavian island of Smeerensburg. If he is to keep his inheritance, (and his silk bedsheets!) Jesper must deliver 6000 letters within a year. Along this uphill battle, he befriends an isolated toymaker – the eponymous Klaus.
The vast grey landscape of Smeerensburg conjures up images of the Artic circle and its dark, dark winters. In fact, it almost reminds me of my trip to Trømso, Norway earlier this year. Especially poignant after learning that the fictional town of Smeerensburg is named after the real abandoned 17th century whaling post of Smeerenburg, Norway! While Trømso was a delightful destination – despite the little hours of daylight it got – the same cannot be said for Smeerensburg. Its inhabitants are even worse. Two feuding clans occupy the in universe town, the Krums and the Ellingboes. Their hatred for one another runs deep and it has everyone from neighbours to the town’s children running amok, hatching deathly hijinks at every corner. It’s a gleeful dread you feel as you watch all the hope drain from Jason Schwartzman’s protagonist, Jesper. How ever will he get enemies to send letters in this god forsaken town, if they won’t even speak to each other??! J.K. Simmons voices Klaus, a daunting axe wielding figure, who turns out to be a gentle giant at a closer look.
So, basically it’s a Santa Claus origin story. The way the story is handled, though, it injects every character, big or small, with a full-rounded oomph. Klaus has a complex background, Jesper finds his motivations morphing, even the one-dimensional townspeople get an arc! (Except for head clansmen Tammy Krum and Aksel Ellingboe – voiced by the talented Joan Cusack and Will Sasso!)
My favourite character from this film hasn’t even gotten a mention yet! Márgu is the only child (depicted) from the Sami community on Smeerensburg, who befriends Jesper, Klaus and co. She and the other Sami people in the movie never once speaks English, communicating strictly in Northern Sámi. Yet somehow, the whole things works! Neda Margrethe Labba is the voice of innocence, of childlike wonder and joy in this instant Christmas classic. In my eyes, Márgu almost becomes a guardian angel like figure to Jesper in his most desperate times.
One critique I do have of the film, is that the Sami people as a group ends up playing the role of Santa’s elves later in the movie. I am a bit biased by how much I love this film though, so I don’t think it warrants any further comment than this. But right out of the gate, that was the overwhelming imagery I picked up on. Considering how well (and dare might I say… authentically?) the culture and language is portrayed though, I think the filmmakers overall do justice by the character of Márgu.
In conclusion, both these films hit the spot for me. The Holdover’s Angus Tully strikes me deeply with teenage angst greater than the wide expansive Barton campus can contain. Learning that actor Dominic Sessa was cast from one of the schools used as a filming location, ties together all aspects of this movie into its poetically just end. Similarly, the tried but true formula of a selfish, naive hero winning over a disapproving and hopeless community is a story that Sergio Pablos handles delicately with nuance and heart. Well, folks, moral of the story is Christmas is a time for holiday cheer and togetherness.
As for this author, they say in London, her small heart grew three sizes that day!
