The Holdovers was released in theaters in November 2023 and quickly become on of the best movies of the year with a 96% Rotten Tomatoes score. The Holdovers stars Paul Giamatti and Da’Vine Joy Randolph recently won Golden Globes at the 2024 Golden Globes Awards, with Giamatti for Best Actor in a comedy or Musical, and Randolph for Best Supporting Actress in a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture. Taking place during the holiday season at an all-boys New England prep school in 1970, The Holdovers follows a history teacher (Giamatti) who is asked to stay on campus along with the school’s cook (Randolph) over the holidays with a troublesome student (Dominic Sessa) who has no place to go.
The film is a charming story that truly emphasizes the important role teachers can play in the lives of their students. If you’re looking for other teacher themed movies like The Holdovers to watch next, check out these 6 recommendations below.
Dead Poets Society (1989)
Cast: Robin Williams, Robert Sean Leonard, Ethan Hawke, Josh Charles, Gale Hansen, Dylan Kussman, Allelon Ruggiero, Kurtwood Smith
Synopsis: “English teacher John Keating inspires his students to look at poetry with a different perspective of authentic knowledge and feelings.”
Where to watch: Paramount+
Detachment (2011)
Cast: Adrien Brody, Christina Hendricks, Bryan Cranston, Marcia Gay Harden, William Petersen, Tim Blake Nelson, Betty Kaye, Sami Gayle, Lucy Liu, Blythe Danner, James Caan
Synopsis: “A substitute teacher who drifts from classroom to classroom finds a connection to the students and teachers during his latest assignment.”
Where to watch: Freevee, Peacock, Plex, The Roku Channel, Tubi
The Emperor’s Club (2002)
Cast: Kevin Kline, Emile Hirsch, Embeth Davidtz, Paul Dano, Jesse Eisenberg, Rob Morrow, Edward Herrmann, Patrick Dempsey, Caitlin O’Heaney, Joel Gretsch, Steven Culp, Harris Yulin, Rishi Mehta, Rahul Khanna
Synopsis: “Kevin Kline stars as Arthur Hundert, a dedicated and inspiring classics professor who has devoted his life to teaching at a prep school for boys. New student Sedgewick Bell, the headstrong son of a powerful senator, joins his class and inexorably alters Mr. Hundert’s life. It is a clash of wills and personalities as these two people seemingly battle for the hearts and souls of the other students at St. Benedictus.”
Where to watch: DIRECTV, Starz
The History Boys (2006)
Cast: Richard Griffiths, Clive Merrison, Frances de la Tour, Samuel Anderson, Dominic Cooper, James Corden, Samuel Barnett, Penelope Wilton, Russell Tovey, Stephen Campbell Moore, Sacha Dhawan, Jamie Parker, Andrew Knott
Synopsis: “An unruly class of gifted and charming teenage boys are taught by two eccentric and innovative teachers, as their headmaster pushes for them all to get accepted into Oxford or Cambridge.”
Where to watch: Apple TV, Google Play, Vudu
The Man Who Knew Infinity (2016)
Cast: Dev Patel, Jeremy Irons, Devika Bhise, Toby Jones, Stephen Fry, Jeremy Northam
Synopsis: “Growing up poor in Madras, India, Srinivasa Ramanujan Iyengar earns admittance to Cambridge University during WWI, where he becomes a pioneer in mathematical theories with the guidance of his professor, G.H. Hardy.”
Where to watch: AMC+, DIRECTV, The Roku Channel, Tubi, Plex
Mona Lisa Smile (2003)
Cast: Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Ginnifer Goodwin, Dominic West, Juliet Stevenson, Marcia Gay Harden, John Slattery, Marian Seldes
Synopsis: “A free-thinking art professor teaches conservative 1950s Wellesley girls to question their traditional social roles.”
Where to watch: Hulu
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