Marathon Viewing This Year's Christmas Films: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

It is the time of year to lounge on the sofa and demolish a tin of holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful.

Once again, a batch of new seasonal stories hopes to be part of our holiday traditions—potentially even earning a place alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it).

Therefore, in a helpful attempt to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to embrace the Christmas spirit, I marathoned as many fresh Christmas films as possible in a single day.

Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Starting, optimistically, on a good foot. This is the only 2025 entry on a popular review site's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time.

The popular band end up stuck in the UK after concluding their world tour and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an evil Santa, who sings to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their familial spark.”

The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is amusing even for the non-fan, while followers will no doubt catch lots of in-jokes as they attempt to get back using any means of transport necessary.

It’s a travelogue of mishaps.

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 relatives who must sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland appears as a Hollywood star roped into a traditional British stage show.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and aging star Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose agent has misled him into thinking he’s starring in renowned British drama.

His pantomime fellow actors tell him he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he insists angrily. One can imagine their response. That is, unless you’re ignorant of traditional stage call-and-response.

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

It’s the type of film that would be a bit cheesy at any other time of year, but is a great entertainment at Christmas.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

A familiar face shows up at the start of this film, too, insulting someone for the second film in a row. Could this be a fresh holiday staple?

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 a star of Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by Bend It Like Beckham’s Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is visited by the ghosts of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

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

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Lunchtime: Stuffed

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

But after he gets an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) talks him into splurging the cash on a holiday to Lapland.

There’s just one issue—he finds out there was an mistake with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to reimburse the excess.

Fun while it lasts but not lasting.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Early Afternoon: Champagne Problems

This is one of those holiday movies where the decorations and snow are in the backdrop—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels cosy and festive all the same.

Driven corporate star Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is assigned to a vineyard to do a deal for a champagne business. En route, she meets a fellow in a bookshop who promises to show her Christmas in Paris.

A commentator recently declared this is the top 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 cozy feelings.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

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

The answer is out there, and Chris sets out to find it with the assistance of a group of well-known experts and celebrities.

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

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun.

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

Pfeiffer starts by mentioning holiday staples like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before saying: “They need to make a movie about the unsung heroes of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the concept, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally finds her strength.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Formulaic Fun

The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new addition in the packed genre of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and strangely compelling—festive fodder.

It’s a tale as old as time: An American woman journeys to a distant snowy land and ends up finding romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher