It’s been almost 20 years since actor Paul Giamatti and director Alexander Payne teamed up for the delightful and poignant “Sideways,” so it figures that it would take something pretty special to follow that up.

That something special has arrived in “The Holdovers.” Working from a script from David Hemingson, Payne has crafted a wonderful story of loneliness and isolation that manages to be both inspirational and uplifting. It is some of Giamatti’s finest work in his criminally underrated career and one of the best films of 2023.

In “The Holdovers” Giamatti plays professor Paul Hunman, a curmudgeon of a man teaching at the elite boarding school Barton Academy in New England in the winter of 1970. It’s a school Hunman once attended himself, but one that is far different in his eyes from when he was a student.

Hunman is forced to serve as the supervisor for the Christmas break “holdovers” — the students who for whatever reason can’t go home for the break. The small number of students eventually dwindles to one — a wise-cracking, under-achieving student named Angus Tully (newcomer Dominic Cessa) who has been left alone at the break after his mother goes on her honeymoon with her new husband.

The duo aren’t completely alone during the break, with head of the cafeteria Mary Lamb (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) staying at the academy — still grieving her son, who was killed while serving in Vietnam.

Hunman and Tully clash, but soon begin to form a friendship with teacher and pupil discovering they have more in common than they initially realized.

There are familiar beats to Hemingson’s screenplay but Payne presents it with a style that is reminiscent of the films from the era the story takes place. This is an old-fashioned coming of age story, where the audience really gets to know the three lead characters and watches as their relationships allow all three to change for the better.

It’s a film that could have easily went off the rails in the wrong hands, but Payne’s gift for ensemble work and deeply rich characters help to keep “The Holdovers” on the right track.

Sessa more than holds his own in his screen debut, finding that pain and hurt in Tully that is buried deep behind his mad at the world facade. In any other film he would be the standout, but Sessa is paired with Giamatti and Randolph — who give two of the best performances of the year.

Randolph’s grieving mother is a source of strength and courage as she struggles to come to terms with her son’s death. It’s the kind of eye-opening work that generally leads to an Academy Award (which I hope is the case).

The same can be said for Giamatti, although it feels like his resume is littered with great work (including “Sideways”). Surprisingly Giamtti has only been nominated for an Oscar once, but it feels like his second nomination might be coming — with a performance that is both right in Giamatti’s wheelhouse but also a bit of an out of the box challenge for the actor.

Giamatti makes Hunman a flawed, but empathetic character — one who comes to find himself much like the pupil, coming to terms with his own demons in the process. It’s a special performance in a film that is pretty special — a memorable experience that still lingers long after my initial viewing.

Starring: Paul Giamatti, Dominic Sessa

Directed by: Alexander Payne

Rating: R for language, some drug use and brief sexual material

Playing at: Regal Bowling Green Stadium 12

Grade: A