Marathon Viewing This Year's Holiday Movies: The Hits, The Misses, and The Guilty Pleasures.

It is the time of year to lounge on the sofa and demolish a packet of mince pies in front of a good movie, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful.

This year, a selection of fresh Christmas films strives to join part of our seasonal watchlist—maybe even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Thus, in a helpful attempt to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to get into the holiday mood, I watched as many fresh holiday releases as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Starting, ideally, on a good foot. This film is the sole 2025 title on a famous website's list of the best 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The musical trio find themselves trapped in the UK after wrapping up their global concert series and must make it back for Christmas. Their endeavors are thwarted by an evil Santa, who bursts into melody to announce they won’t get home until they “rekindle their familial spark.”

The repartee between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the casual viewer, while followers will no doubt notice lots of references as they try to get back using all transportation available.

It’s private planes, trains and automobiles.

It’s not legendary, but is excellent for fans 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

Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a Hollywood star roped into a traditional British stage show.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and aging star Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose representative has misled him into thinking he’s performing in high-class London stage.

His pantomime fellow actors inform him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their retort. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some great jokes, some touching sub-plots, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too.

It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit naff at another season, but is a lot of fun at Christmas.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

An actor appears at the start of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the second consecutive movie. Is this a new Christmas tradition?

This time, he’s a singing black cab driver who encounters Mr Sood, the latest spin 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 filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale progresses as the stingy Mr Sood is haunted by the spirits of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, 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 charismatic and Nayyar’s acting is wooden—a problem when he’s so the main character.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

12.04pm - Stuffed

There's just enough time for a channel's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “isn't big on 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 vacation to Lapland.

There’s just one issue—he learns there was an error with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to determine how to reimburse the difference.

Pleasant yet unmemorable.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Early Afternoon: Champagne Problems

This is one of those holiday movies where the festive trappings are in the background—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its core purpose—but it feels comfortable and seasonal all the same.

Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a champagne business. On the way, she runs into a fellow in a literary haven who vows to show her a festive Paris.

A commentator recently claimed this is the best new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a Christmas romance with a hint of sophistication and gives the necessary cozy feelings.

The scene with a extended debate about Die Hard is very good too.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas

Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, despite the attempts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him otherwise.

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

It’s gentle but charming, and ideal viewing while anticipating Santa to visit.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a dysfunctional American family who reunite for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary.

Pfeiffer starts by mentioning 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 the premise, but in execution it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last comes into her own.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Formulaic Fun

The day’s waned in quality, but thankfully here’s a new entry in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and highly entertaining—festive fodder.

It’s a tale as old as time: An American woman travels to a far-off wintery locale and ends up finding romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher