Marathon Viewing 2025's Holiday Movies: The Hits, The Misses, and The Guilty Pleasures.

It is the time of year to slob out on the couch and consume a packet of festive treats in front of a terrific flick, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful.

Once again, a batch of latest Christmas films hopes to be part of our seasonal watchlist—potentially even joining the ranks alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start).

So, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to embrace the holiday mood, I watched as many new holiday releases as possible in a single day.

7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Beginning, optimistically, on a good foot. This is the sole 2025 movie on a well-known aggregator's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The musical trio end up trapped in the UK after wrapping up their world tour and must return for Christmas. Their endeavors are hampered by an villainous Saint Nick, who breaks into song to state they won’t get home until they “rediscover their brotherly magic.”

The back-and-forth between the squabbling siblings is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while followers will certainly notice lots of easter eggs as they try to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s private planes, trains and automobiles.

It’s not an all-time classic, but is excellent for fans and a good start to the day.

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

8.45am - Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland stars as a Hollywood star cast a pantomime.

“A panto-what??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and aging star Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose representative has misled him into thinking he’s starring in prestigious English theatre.

His Aladdin co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he insists angrily. One can imagine their response. That is, unless you’re unfamiliar with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some very funny lines, some cockle-warming side stories, and the rest of the cast is cracking, too.

It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit tacky at another season, but is a highly enjoyable at Christmas.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

A familiar face appears at the beginning of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the second film in a row. Could this be a budding festive ritual?

This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who collects Mr Sood, the newest interpretation 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 the filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story progresses 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 unique from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s portrayal is wooden—a problem when he’s so central to everything.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

12.04pm - Stuffed

There’s time for a major broadcaster's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “avoids Christmas.”

But after he is awarded an large festive windfall at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) persuades him spending the sum on a vacation to Lapland.

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

Fun while it lasts but not lasting.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

1.12pm - Champagne Problems

This is one of those Christmas films where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same.

Driven corporate star Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a vineyard to do a deal for a champagne business. During her travels, she encounters a guy in a book store who offers to show her Christmas in Paris.

An expert recently declared this is the best new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a festive dalliance with a touch of class and gives the necessary cozy feelings.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

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

The answer is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the expert help of a panel of well-known figures.

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

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun.

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

Pfeiffer starts by mentioning Christmas classics 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 what this is, but in reality it’s really a mash-up of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Formulaic Fun

The day’s taken a dip, but fortunately here’s a new offering in the packed genre of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and utterly watchable—festive fodder.

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

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher