‘The Holdovers’ Trailer: Paul Giamatti Stars In Alexander Payne’s New Period Dramedy Arriving This Fall

You gotta love when a studio decides to take a bit of a risk when it comes to marketing a film. It’s always fun when you watch a trailer and realize that a marketing team has really felt inspired when they worked on something. And that’s the feeling you get watching the trailer for Alexander Payne’s new dramedy, “The Holdovers.”

READ MORE: Summer 2023 Movie Preview: 52 Must-See Films To Watch

As seen in the trailer, “The Holdovers” tells the story of a teacher who is asked to stay during winter break at a prep school to watch over a student who has nowhere to go. The unlikely duo are joined by the school’s head cook, as they grow into a weird sort of makeshift family. But the fun part of the trailer is how the clip utilizes the retro, period feel of the film to create a trailer that could have been ripped from the ‘70s/’80s. It’s quite refreshing when the marketing team could have easily just churned out a bland trailer. 

The film stars Paul Giamatti, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Dominic Sessa. As mentioned, “The Holdovers” is directed by Alexander Payne, based on a script by David Hemingson. 

“The Holdovers” hits select theaters on November 3 before going wide a week later. You can watch the trailer below.

Here’s the synopsis:

From acclaimed director Alexander Payne, THE HOLDOVERS follows a curmudgeonly instructor (Paul Giamatti) at a New England prep school who is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually he forms an unlikely bond with one of them — a damaged, brainy troublemaker (newcomer Dominic Sessa) — and with the school’s head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam (Da’Vine Joy Randolph).