Marathon Viewing 2025's Christmas Films: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights.

‘Tis the season to slob out on the couch and consume a box of mince pies in front of a terrific flick, a bad movie, or one that’s terrible yet terrific.

This year, a selection of latest seasonal stories aims to become part of our festive viewing—potentially even finding a spot alongside enduring classics like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it).

So, in a noble effort to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to get into the festive feeling, I watched as many new holiday releases as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Beginning, hopefully, on a positive note. This release is the only 2025 title on a popular review site's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The Jonas Brothers find themselves stuck in the UK after wrapping up their global concert series and must make it back for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who sings to declare they won’t get home until they “rekindle their familial spark.”

The back-and-forth between the squabbling siblings is amusing even for the casual viewer, while fans will undoubtedly pick up on lots of references as they attempt to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s a journey of epic proportions.

It’s not an all-time classic, but is superb for devotees and a positive start to the day.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their loved ones who must sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor cast a pantomime.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and older lead Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose representative has tricked him into thinking he’s performing in prestigious English theatre.

His Aladdin fellow actors inform him he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their response. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response.

There are some hilarious moments, some heartwarming storylines, and the rest of the cast is cracking, too.

It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit naff at any other time of year, but is a lot of fun at Christmas.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

A familiar face shows up at the outset of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the second consecutive movie. Is this a budding festive ritual?

This time, he’s a musical taxi operator who picks up Mr Sood, the newest interpretation on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.

Mr Sood is played by a star of Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the director of Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale progresses as the stingy Mr Sood is haunted by the apparitions of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This South Asian reinterpretation is at least distinct from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s performance is flat—a problem when he’s so central to everything.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

There's just enough time for a major broadcaster's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.”

But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) convinces him splurging the cash on a vacation to Lapland.

There’s just one problem—he learns there was an error with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to pay back the remainder.

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

1.12pm - Champagne Problems

This is one of those Christmas films where the festive trappings are in the background—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its core purpose—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same.

Driven corporate star Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is assigned to a vineyard to secure an acquisition for a champagne business. En route, she runs into a guy in a bookshop who vows to show her a festive Paris.

An expert recently claimed this is the best new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the necessary heartwarming sensation.

The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is very good too.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, refuses to stop believing in Father Christmas, despite the persuasion of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him otherwise.

The answer is somewhere, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the assistance of a group of well-known figures.

It’s low-key but charming, and good viewing while waiting for Santa to visit.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄

A Star-Studded Family Drama

Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a bickering American family who reunite for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary.

Pfeiffer opens by name-dropping classic festive films like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before declaring: “They need to make a movie about the real champions of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the concept, but in execution it’s really a mash-up of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last takes center stage.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s gone downhill, but happily here’s a new addition in the crowded field of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and strangely compelling—seasonal comfort food.

It’s a story as familiar as can be: An American woman goes on a quest to a far-off wintery locale and ends up discovering romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher