This week we check out a contender for that title,  Alexander Payne’s seasonally appropriate — for December — “The Holdovers.”

Take that perennial Christmas chestnut you watch time and time again. Sprinkle in elements of “Dead Poets Society.” Then let someone like the late filmmaker Hal Ashby, who graced us with “Harold and Maude,” baste it and bake it.

That somewhat conveys what you have with Alexander Payne’s holiday-themed treat, a droll but fragile character study about three loners stuck together in 1970 at a snowy New England prep school during what’s allegedly the “most wonderful time of the year.”

Payne has always specialized in giving us multi-dimensional, quirky individuals, characters you sometimes like and sometimes simply can’t stand. In essence, they’re flawed and act an awful lot like you and me. That’s true of the trio that screenwriter David Hemingson crafts with such genuine and delicate care. They include a crabby professor (Paul Giamatti, who had his breakthrough role in Payne’s “Sideways) whose pontifical retorts are often anchored to arcane historical references that no one can understand; a grieving Black chef (Da’Vine Joy Randolph, channeling every genuine emotion the script calls for) spending her first Christmas without her son, killed in Vietnam; and a brainy but volatile teen (Dominic Sessa, a welcome newcomer) who got pawned off by his mom and her new and wealthy husband.

They are very different people with a common ailment: each is nursing deep-seated pain.

It’s one of Payne’s best funny-sad films, and it’s steeped in a nostalgic fondness for early ‘70s filmmaking — evident in the throwback credits and in the film’s faded color palette and unrushed pacing. That does mean it takes its meandering time to get to the “meat” of the story — if you can call it that — but patience proves out as “Holdovers” fleshes out its leads and reveals their secrets and the intense feelings inside each of them.

For that reason and others (including the soundtrack), “The Holdovers” is way tastier than your average holiday movie leftovers. Payne brings to the vast tableau of Christmas films a departure — a  movie about  three lonely people having a dickens of a time connecting and dealing with their feelings until they get thrown together to find comfort and joy from each other. And isn’t that exactly what the holidays are supposed to do? Details: 3½ stars out of 4; in theaters Nov. 3.

Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.

Oh, yeah.

Here’s our roundup.

“The Fall of the House of Usher”: It’s risky to modernize or repurpose classic literary works and try to create something unique and visionary in the process. Even Oscar-winning filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón failed with a misguided “Great Expectations,” starring Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow.

But upscale horror filmmaker Mike Flanagan could write a textbook on how to do it right with his eight-part ode to legendary horror writer Edgar Allan Poe. This inspired “Usher” infuses Poe’s tales of terror with contemporary relevance and respects the source material.

Flanagan’s macabre update of Poe’s story of familial depravity and madness serves as a table setting for an “And Then There Were None” schematic in which the ones getting picked off are soulless members of a privileged, uber-wealthy family that has built its pillar of wealth by addicting Americans to painkillers.

Lording over this dynasty is a vile twosome with a rotten childhood to say the least: brother Roderick (the underrated Bruce Greenwood) and his conniving sister Madeline (the equally underrated Mary McDonnell).

Ostensibly, Roderick is the patriarch in charge but he has a hard time corralling his narcissistic adult children (inheritors), all of whom have kinky dark sides that lead them down the bloody road to a Poe-inspired fate. Flanagan wrote or co-wrote all but one episode, and the writing is as razor-blade sharp and bloody clever as with his signature works, Netflix’s “The Haunting of Hill House,” “Midnight Mass” and the underrated standalone film “Doctor Sleep.”

The creepy production values are top-notch and the scares are not only frightening but disturbing. (“Usher” is more gory and loads up on more sex than Flanagan’s past series). The cast is consistently strong and features Mark Hamill going gruff as the extra-busy Usher lawyer Arthur Pym, who attempts to mop up the family’s many messes. Another treat is seeing Flanagan regular Carla Gugino as a mysterious presence popping up throughout the lives of Roderick and Madeline. It all makes for ghoulish fun that’s well-suited for the upcoming Halloween season. Make no mistake, though, this isn’t just a bingeworthy streamer; “The Fall of the House of Usher” just so happens to be one of the best series Netflix has ever produced. Details: 4 stars out of 4; all episodes drop Oct. 13.

“Lessons in Chemistry”: Ask any book club member to choose one of their favorite novels from 2022 and chances are Bonnie Garmus’ beguiling novel featuring a quirky brainiac with one of the best names ever — Elizabeth Zott — will pop up on that list. While the misfortune was mine for not reading it beforehand, I will definitely do so after watching showrunner Lee Eisenberg’s moving eight-part adaptation for Apple TV+.

I can see why “Lessons in Chemistry” found a favored spot on bookshelves everywhere. But as fans know, divulging too much about what happens to Elizabeth (played to the eccentric hilt by Oscar winner Brie Larson) would be a recipe for hate mail. Suffice to say she stars as a brilliant chemist whose career is blotted by the patriarchy ruling the science world of the ‘50s. What can be also be said is that there is great chemistry between Larsen and Lewis Pullman as hot-shot chemist Calvin Evans who shares the same passion as she and is just as equally socially awkward. A turn of events upends their careers and leads the resilient Elizabeth on a path to a subversive cooking show. “Lessons in Chemistry” could have been tighter (trimmed to six episodes), and a subplot about Black neighbor Harriet (Aja Naomi King) fighting racial injustice could be more developed. Still, “Chemistry” comes up with a winning formula in the end. And one episode that gets told from the perspective of the family dog Six Thirty (voice of B.J. Novak) tears you up — particularly if you’re a pet owner. Details: 3 stars; two episodes drop Oct. 13, with a new episode dropping every Friday through Nov. 24.

“Foe”: What unfolded well on paper doesn’t fare so well on screen in Garth Davis’ misguided but very good-looking version of Iain Reid’s ambitious sci-fi-tinged psychological drama. Its central premise about a stranger (Aaron Pierre) making an extraordinary offer that calls into the question the relationship of an isolated couple (Paul Mescal and Saoirse Ronan) in a farmhouse and separates them for an extended period of time is indeed intriguing, but the unpredictable turns in the screenplay — written by Davis and Reid — wind up ringing false and unraveling into a pretentious, impenetrable mess. There are big themes explored here — including AI — but the should-be unsettling material gets way too cluttered and at times becomes laughable, disconnecting us from the plight of these two, who seem to use up a hell of a lot of water during a drought that’s killing off the planet. That is just one of the puzzling aspects of a production that unfortunately squanders the talents of Mescal and Ronan and its gorgeous production values. Just read the book. Details: 1½ stars; opens Oct. 13 in San Francisco theaters and Oct. 20 at the Piedmont Theatre in Oakland.

“The Caine Mutiny Court Martial”: In one of his final acts as director, the late, great William Friedkin presented his cast — notably Kiefer Sutherland as the quick-tempered Lt. Philip Francis Queeg (a part made immortal by Humphrey Bogart) — with the greatest gift he could offer, allowing each actor to take juicy command of the camera as it hones in on every facial tic and twitching hand on the witness stand. Each gets a chance to shine in this contemporized courtroom drama that’s based on Herman Wouk’s play. Queeg doesn’t get much screen time but his presence lingers throughout. Viewed as an old guard who’s out of touch, Queeg’s blamed by Lt. Steve Maryk (Jake Lacy, giving the role some shading) and others for putting members of the Navy at risk during a storm at sea. Maryk’s decision to step in and take command gets him branded as a mutineer and lands him in a court-martial trial, along with his reluctant lawyer (Jason Clarke). It makes for a classic courtroom thriller, and comes with a zinger at the end — a warning from a filmmaker who’s irreplaceable. Details: 3 stars; available on Showtime and Paramount+.

“Castlevania: Nocturne”: In eight briskly told animated episodes, showrunners Kevin Kolde and Clive Bradley relocate the popular vampire streaming series in the French Revolution with vampire hunter Richter Belmont (voiced by Edward Bluemel) taking on a nasty batch of aristocrats preying on poor people. The action does get bloody and features a batch of new and intriguing characters, including the gay Olrox (voice of Zahn McClarnon of “The Dark Winds” series), an Aztec bloodsucker responsible for the death of Richter’s mom. He too senses that something major and ominous is in the works, and doesn’t like it. My only beef about this intricately plotted season is that its eighth episode lacks a true ending, making us gnash our teeth for another season. Fortunately, we’ll get it since Netflix just announced “Nocturne” has been renewed. Details: 3 stars; available now on Netflix.

Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.

• 

  Wildlife rehabilitation technician, Jennifer Martines checks on one of the flock of Canada Geese, that mistakenly landed in the sticky goo at La Brea Tar Pits, suffering serious injuries and deaths on July 31st. Of the 7 geese transported to the International Bird Rescue Center in San Pedro, 5 did not survive, one is still not stable and this goose passed the water repellent check up and was able to rejoin other birds in the outdoor water area on Tuesday, August 15, 2023. (Photo by Brittany Murray, Press-Telegram/SCNG)

• 

  One of the flock of Canada Geese, that mistakenly landed in the sticky goo at La Brea Tar Pits, suffering serious injuries and deaths on July 31st is now on the mend. Of the 7 geese transported to the International Bird Rescue Center in San Pedro, 5 did not survive, one is still not stable and this goose, on the right, passed the water repellent check up and was able to rejoin other birds in the outdoor water area on Tuesday, August 15, 2023. (Photo by Brittany Murray, Press-Telegram/SCNG)

• 

  L-R Wildlife rehabilitation technicians, Jennifer Martines and Kadi Erickson check on one of the flock of Canada Geese, that mistakenly landed in the sticky goo at La Brea Tar Pits, suffering serious injuries and deaths on July 31st. Of the 7 geese transported to the International Bird Rescue Center in San Pedro, 5 did not survive, one is still not stable and this goose passed the water repellent check up and was able to rejoin other birds in the outdoor water area on Tuesday, August 15, 2023. (Photo by Brittany Murray, Press-Telegram/SCNG)

In a birds-eye view, the Lake Pit at La Brea Tar Pits appears to be a refreshing body of water in the middle of the developed Los Angeles cityscape.

But it became a death trap for a flock of 15 Canada geese that landed in the sticky goo on July 31.

From above, “it looks like a pretty lake in the middle of a city,” said veterinarian Rebecca Duerr of the International Bird Rescue’s Los Angeles Wildlife Center, in San Pedro.

Listless, unable to stand and mostly immobilized by the heavy tar covering them, the prognosis was dire. Eight of them died quickly. Seven made it to the bird rescue center, but all but two of those also died in fairly short order.

But two survived and remained under care at the San Pedro facility as of Tuesday, Aug. 15. Caregivers said they hope the geese will recover enough to be released.

One of the birds, Duerr said, in a telephone interview, had an operation on Sunday but was stable.

The other one, she said, was well enough to join other birds at the center on Tuesday, she said.

“I have good hopes,” she said.

When the birds were initially rescued from the tar pit and brought in, she said, “they were stuck to themselves and to the boxes they were in.”

“It’s heartbreaking to see accidents like this occur,” JD Bergeron, CEO of Bird Rescue in Northern California, said in a written statement. “Birds in a changing world face dwindling natural habitat and lack of habitat is a big problem for the wild animals that call Los Angeles home.”

When the initial group of birds was bought in, bird center officials said, they were experiencing severe stress and had developed a condition called capture myopathy, where muscle damage results from extreme exertion and struggling. One bird had a broken leg from the experience.

Canada geese are found in California year-round and are a “natural resident” of the area, Duerr said, and have “learned to live in cities.”

Both of the surviving geese are still recovering from capture myopathy but are slowly regaining the strength to stand on their own. They also are recovering from burn wounds and feather loss. The bird requiring surgery had severe burns “to the bone” on its underside, Duerr said.

La Brea Tar Pits and Museum, 5801 Wilshire Blvd., is an iconic part of L.A. It is the only actively excavated Ice Age fossil site in an urban location, according to its website. For more than 50,000 years, the pits trapped Ice Age animals, plants and insects in its sticky asphalt, inadvertently preserving them for future generations to discover. More than 100 excavations have been made there since the early 1900s and the recovered fossils are housed in the adjacent museum.

The Lake Pit is located in front of the museum.

According to the description on La Brea Tar Pits website, it was “left over from asphalt mining operations in the late 1800s. Rain and groundwater has collected above the bubbling asphalt, creating a small lake. The lake’s bubbles, sheet and distinctive odor come from a deep underground oil field.”

The Lake Pit is fenced off to the public, but, Duerr said, it would be helpful if something could be in place to prevent birds from flying into it.

Amy Hood from La Brea Tar Pits, said in a written response that the incident was “an unfortunate and distressing” event.

“This particular situation is a rare occurrence,” she said, “but animals occasionally getting stuck in the tar is a process that has been happening here for over 60,000 years. Rescuing animals from the Lake Pit is difficult and dangerous and best left to those with specialized training.”

She said the museum contacted Los Angeles Animal Services and the department’s Specialized Mobile Animal Rescue Team responded.

“Bird Rescue consults with wildlife responsibility partners to deter wild birds from these types of hazards,” Bergeron said. “The best-case scenario is to prevent these injuries from happening. Until then, we rely on public support to pay for extensive medial care and costly treatments.”

The public can donate to the nonprofit center by visiting birdrescue.org/donate.

The wildfire that swept across Maui a week ago turned one of the nation’s most celebrated island vistas into an ashen moonscape and killed at least 99 people, a number that officials warn could rise by scores as the search continues.

The deadliest wildfire in the U.S. in more than a century devoured homes and businesses, blackened cars and left only ruins where thriving neighborhoods once stood. In some places, the flames advanced as fast as a car at highway speed — a mile a minute.

The most serious blaze swept into Lahaina on Aug. 8 and destroyed nearly every building in the town of 13,000. When the flames were out and the smoke cleared, all that remained was a grid of gray rubble wedged between the blue ocean and lush green slopes.

Now begins a long recovery as survivors mourn the dead, search teams look for more victims in the charred debris and families try to begin anew.

The cause of the wildfire is under investigation. Fueled by a dry summer and strong winds from a passing hurricane, the flames raced through parched brush covering the island.

The fire was Hawaii’s deadliest natural disaster in decades, surpassing a 1960 tsunami that killed 61 people. A tsunami in 1946 killed more than 150 on the Big Island.