🔗 Share this article Marathon Viewing The Latest Festive Features: The Hits, The Misses, and The Guilty Pleasures. It is the time of year to slob out on the couch and consume a box of festive treats in front of a great film, a bad movie, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. Once again, a crop of new holiday movies hopes to be part of our seasonal watchlist—potentially even earning a place alongside enduring classics like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it). So, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to find the holiday mood, I marathoned as many fresh Christmas films as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Kicking off, hopefully, on a high. This release is the sole 2025 entry on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 festive features of all time. The musical trio are trapped in the UK after wrapping up their international trek and must return for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an villainous Saint Nick, who sings to announce they won’t get home until they “find their sibling bond.” The repartee between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while devotees will undoubtedly notice lots of in-jokes as they endeavor to get back using all transportation available. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is excellent for fans and a solid start to the day. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it. Next: A Star in Panto A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a movie actor cast a "panto". “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and ageing action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose representative has deceived him into thinking he’s performing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime fellow actors tell him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their retort. That is, unless you’re ignorant of traditional panto catchphrases. There are some hilarious moments, some touching side stories, and the ensemble is excellent, too. It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at another season, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma Danny Dyer pops up at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the next movie straight. Might this become a new Christmas tradition? This time, he’s a musical taxi operator who encounters Mr Sood, the newest interpretation on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Mr Sood is played by The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the director of Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story develops as the miserly Mr Sood is visited by the spirits of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least different from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s portrayal is lifeless—a significant issue when he’s so the main character. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed Before lunch for a channel's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “avoids Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) talks him into blowing the money on a holiday to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he finds out there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to devise a plan for how to reimburse the remainder. Enjoyable but forgettable. Festive score: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those Christmas films where the decorations and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a vineyard 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 finest new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the required cozy feelings. The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is very good too. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas Teenage Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, despite the efforts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The truth is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the assistance of a group of well-known scientists and personalities. It’s gentle but endearing, and good viewing while anticipating Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a bickering American family who reunite for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing classic festive films like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before stating: “They need to make a movie about the true heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s what this is, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s gone downhill, but thankfully here’s a new entry in the crowded field of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and highly entertaining—festive fodder. It’s a story as familiar as can be: An American woman goes on a quest to a distant snowy land and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
It is the time of year to slob out on the couch and consume a box of festive treats in front of a great film, a bad movie, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. Once again, a crop of new holiday movies hopes to be part of our seasonal watchlist—potentially even earning a place alongside enduring classics like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it). So, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to find the holiday mood, I marathoned as many fresh Christmas films as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Kicking off, hopefully, on a high. This release is the sole 2025 entry on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 festive features of all time. The musical trio are trapped in the UK after wrapping up their international trek and must return for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an villainous Saint Nick, who sings to announce they won’t get home until they “find their sibling bond.” The repartee between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while devotees will undoubtedly notice lots of in-jokes as they endeavor to get back using all transportation available. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is excellent for fans and a solid start to the day. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it. Next: A Star in Panto A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a movie actor cast a "panto". “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and ageing action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose representative has deceived him into thinking he’s performing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime fellow actors tell him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their retort. That is, unless you’re ignorant of traditional panto catchphrases. There are some hilarious moments, some touching side stories, and the ensemble is excellent, too. It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at another season, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma Danny Dyer pops up at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the next movie straight. Might this become a new Christmas tradition? This time, he’s a musical taxi operator who encounters Mr Sood, the newest interpretation on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Mr Sood is played by The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the director of Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story develops as the miserly Mr Sood is visited by the spirits of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least different from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s portrayal is lifeless—a significant issue when he’s so the main character. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed Before lunch for a channel's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “avoids Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) talks him into blowing the money on a holiday to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he finds out there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to devise a plan for how to reimburse the remainder. Enjoyable but forgettable. Festive score: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those Christmas films where the decorations and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a vineyard 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 finest new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the required cozy feelings. The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is very good too. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas Teenage Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, despite the efforts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The truth is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the assistance of a group of well-known scientists and personalities. It’s gentle but endearing, and good viewing while anticipating Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a bickering American family who reunite for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing classic festive films like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before stating: “They need to make a movie about the true heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s what this is, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s gone downhill, but thankfully here’s a new entry in the crowded field of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and highly entertaining—festive fodder. It’s a story as familiar as can be: An American woman goes on a quest to a distant snowy land and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher