Marathon Viewing The Latest Holiday Movies: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights.

‘Tis the season to slob out on the couch and consume a tin of mince pies in front of a good movie, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful.

Once again, a batch of fresh seasonal stories hopes to be part of our holiday traditions—perhaps even earning a place alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Thus, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to get into the Christmas spirit, I watched as many fresh Christmas films as possible in a single day.

7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Starting, ideally, on a high. This film is the sole 2025 entry on a famous website's list of the top 100 festive features of all time.

The Jonas Brothers end up stranded in the UK after finishing their international trek and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who breaks into song to announce they won’t get home until they “find their brotherly magic.”

The repartee between the bickering brothers is enjoyable even for the casual viewer, while fans will undoubtedly pick up on lots of references as they endeavor to get back using any means of transport necessary.

It’s a journey of epic proportions.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their family members who are obliged to sit through it.

Next: A Star in Panto

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor tricked into a traditional British stage show.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and aging lead Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose manager has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in renowned British drama.

His Aladdin fellow actors tell him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he protests. One can imagine their retort. That is, unless you’re not acquainted with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming side stories, and the ensemble is cracking, too.

It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit cheesy at any other time of year, but is a highly enjoyable at Christmas.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

Danny Dyer shows up at the beginning of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the second consecutive movie. Could this be a budding festive ritual?

This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur 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 progresses as the stingy Mr Sood is confronted 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 different from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s performance is flat—a problem when he’s so the main character.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

There's just enough time for a major broadcaster's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “avoids Christmas.”

But after he is awarded an large festive windfall at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) persuades him blowing the money on a vacation to Lapland.

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

Pleasant yet unmemorable.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

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 warm and holiday-like all the same.

High-powered businesswoman Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a vineyard to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she encounters a man in a book store who vows to show her a festive Paris.

A critic recently stated this is the top new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a Christmas romance with a touch of class and gives the necessary warm and fuzzy feels.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, despite the attempts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him the truth.

The truth is somewhere, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the guidance of a team of well-known figures.

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

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄

Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a bickering 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 real champions of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the concept, but in reality it’s really a jumble of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Formulaic Fun

The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new offering in the crowded field of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and utterly watchable—holiday fare.

It’s a tale as old as time: An American woman journeys to a picturesque cold country and ends up discovering romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher