Hey_Sweden

Paul Giamatti plays Paul Hunham, a curmudgeonly history teacher at Barton (a New England prep school) in 1970. That year, it falls to him to supervise the students who are "holdovers": kids with nowhere to go for the Christmas holidays. The kid posing the biggest challenge is Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa, in an impressive breakthrough performance), an obviously bright but very troubled young man who tends to cause trouble himself wherever he goes.

Although it's a foregone conclusion that these two unlikely friends are going to end up bonding, and become a lot closer, writer David Hemingson & director Alexander Payne make this journey worthwhile. Overall, the film is a very affecting character study, with characters worth getting to know. (Rounding out the main trio is Da'Vine Joy Randolph, the campus' head cook who has just lost her son (an alumnus of the school), who was serving in Vietnam.)

The acting is superb from our trio of principals; of course, one expects a stellar performance from Giamatti, but Randolph & young Sessa are just as strong. (He could easily have a great career ahead of him.)

It's not that the script delivers any real surprises, but Hemingson & Payne make the story vivid and engaging. Even with a running time of two hours & 14 minutes, they make every minute count. And they create characters whom the viewer can care about just as surely as the characters come to care about each other.

This is definitely a worthy addition to the canon of holiday fare; one nice touch is the way that Payne makes that 70s aesthetic prevalent, including a vintage Universal logo sequence to begin the film.

Eight out of 10.

Comedic chaos erupts among the characters when Harry, Dan, and Bull *all* show interest in the same woman: Suzanne (Caroline McWilliams, 'Benson'), who shares interests with each of them. Harry has thrown his hat into the ring upon learning that she has an extra ticket for a Mel Torme concert - and we know how he feels about Mel Torme.

There are some fine comic moments, and some priceless one-liners as Dan fires insults at Bull ("Conehead the Barbarian!"); it's a good thing for Dan that Bull is not quicker to anger. In his effort to square things between himself, Dan & Bull, Harry ends up making a true bonehead move.

The whole cast is great here, with the end credits going for a live-action background that provided a little something extra. And guest star McWilliams (who was married to Michael Keaton from 1982 to 1990) is sufficiently appealing to show how guys could really go for a lady like her.

Although never truly uproarious, this engaging early episode does have some real laughs going for it.

Seven out of 10.

Jack & Larry are both over the moon over their latest girlfriends, not knowing that they are actually dating the same girl (Rebecca Holden, 'Knight Rider'). Janet tries to keep the two of them from finding out, especially since Jack has promised to "break in two" any other man who would dare to make a move on her.

'A Crowded Romance' is a very funny episode that gives Joyce plenty to work with, and indeed some of the brightest moments involve her interacting with either John or Richard. There's one hysterical point where Jack is carrying Janet in the most awkward way possible. And, of course, there's the expected hilarity when we see Jack at his current job: "mechanical man" in the front window of a department store!

We do see Janet on the phone with Chrissy, although we do not see Suzannes' side of the conversation. This was actually the first episode of the fifth season to be filmed, but Suzannes' absence has less to do with her contract dispute and more to do with a strike that was going on at the time.

Furley doesn't make an appearance during this episode, but the episode is still very funny without him. John, Joyce, and Richard are all in very fine form here.

Eight out of 10.