Marathon Viewing This Year's Holiday Movies: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights.

‘Tis the season to slob out on the couch and consume a tin of holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a bad movie, or one that’s awesomely awful.

This year, a selection of new seasonal stories aims to become part of our festive viewing—potentially even finding a spot alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Therefore, in a helpful attempt to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to embrace the festive feeling, I watched as many fresh festive movies as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Kicking off, hopefully, on a high. This film is the sole 2025 entry on a famous website's list of the greatest 100 festive features of all time.

The musical trio end up stuck in the UK after wrapping up their world tour and must return for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who sings to announce they won’t get home until they “find their sibling bond.”

The banter between the bickering brothers is enjoyable even for the uninitiated, while devotees will no doubt catch lots of easter eggs as they endeavor to get back using all transportation available.

It’s a journey of epic proportions.

It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is excellent for devotees and a positive start to the day.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland appears as a celebrity tricked into a pantomime.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and ageing lead Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose agent has misled him into thinking he’s appearing in high-class London stage.

His Aladdin co-stars tell him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he protests. It's easy to predict their retort. Unless you’re ignorant of traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming storylines, and the rest of the cast is brilliant, too.

It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at another season, but is a great entertainment at Christmas.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

Danny Dyer appears at the beginning of this film, too, insulting someone for the second consecutive movie. Might this become a fresh holiday staple?

This time, he’s a musical taxi operator who collects Mr Sood, the latest spin on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.

Mr Sood is played by an actor from Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by Bend It Like Beckham’s Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is visited by the apparitions of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This cultural adaptation is at least distinct from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s performance is lifeless—a significant issue when he’s so central to everything.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

12.04pm - Stuffed

There’s time for a network's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.”

But after he is awarded an sizable holiday payout at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) talks him into blowing the money on a vacation to Lapland.

There’s just one snag—he finds out there was an error with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to devise a plan for how to return the remainder.

Fun while it lasts but not lasting.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

1.12pm - Champagne Problems

This is one of those holiday movies where the festive trappings are in the backdrop—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its main point—but it feels cosy and festive all the same.

High-powered businesswoman Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is assigned to a French chateau to negotiate a purchase for a champagne business. During her travels, she encounters a fellow in a literary haven who promises to show her Christmas in Paris.

An expert recently declared this is the top new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a Christmas romance with a touch of class and gives the required warm and fuzzy feels.

The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is notable too.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

Teenage Chris, played by Lenny Rush, refuses to stop believing in Father Christmas, in spite of the efforts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality.

The answer is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the guidance of a panel of well-known scientists and personalities.

It’s gentle but endearing, and perfect viewing while expecting Santa to visit.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄

Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun.

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

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

So that’s what this is, but in practice it’s really a mash-up of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally finds her strength.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s gone downhill, but fortunately here’s a new entry in the saturated market of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and highly entertaining—festive fodder.

It’s a narrative as familiar as can be: An American woman goes on a quest to a picturesque cold country and ends up stumbling across romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher