“The Holdovers” is a holiday heartwarmer

Christmastime is often a time of joy and holiday cheer, but it can also serve as a depressing reminder of the people we are not with. In Alexander Payne’s new film “The Holdovers” — which screened at The Paramount Theater during the Virginia Film Festival Saturday — Angus Tully, played by newcomer Dominic Sessa, finds out he cannot spend the holidays with his mother. Instead, he has to stay at his boarding school over the holiday break with his unrelentingly headstrong history teacher Paul Hunham, played by Paul Giamatti.