Marathon Viewing 2025's Christmas Films: The Hits, The Misses, and The Guilty Pleasures.

It is the time of year to relax on the sofa and consume a box of festive treats in front of a good movie, a awful feature, or one that’s so bad it’s good.

Once again, a selection of new seasonal stories aims to become part of our seasonal watchlist—perhaps even joining the ranks alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it).

Thus, in a helpful attempt to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to find the Christmas spirit, I marathoned as many recent holiday releases as possible in a single day.

7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Starting, hopefully, on a high. This release is the only 2025 title on a famous website's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The musical trio find themselves trapped in the UK after finishing their world tour and must get home for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an evil Santa, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “find their familial spark.”

The banter between the bickering brothers is enjoyable even for the uninitiated, while followers will undoubtedly notice lots of references as they attempt to get back using any means of transport necessary.

It’s a travelogue of mishaps.

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

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their family members who must sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

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

“A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and aging action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose agent has misled him into thinking he’s starring in high-class London stage.

His pantomime co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he insists angrily. One can imagine their response. Unless you’re ignorant of traditional British theatre traditions.

There are some very funny lines, some cockle-warming storylines, and the ensemble is cracking, too.

It’s the type of film that would be a bit cheesy at another season, but is a great entertainment at Christmas.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

10.19am - Christmas Karma

Danny Dyer shows up at the outset of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the second film in a row. Is this a new Christmas tradition?

This time, he’s a singing black cab driver who collects Mr Sood, the modern take 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 director of Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story 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 South Asian reinterpretation is at least unique from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s acting is flat—a major flaw when he’s so the focal point.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

12.04pm - Stuffed

Before lunch for a channel's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.”

But after he gets an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) talks him into blowing the money on a vacation to Lapland.

There’s just one issue—he learns there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to devise a plan for how to pay back the excess.

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Early Afternoon: Champagne Problems

This is one of those holiday movies where the decorations and snow are in the background—Christmas is the setting 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 French chateau to secure an acquisition for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she meets a fellow in a book store who vows to show her a festive Paris.

A critic recently declared this is the top new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a festive dalliance with a touch of class and gives the obligatory cozy feelings.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

Teenage Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, regardless of the persuasion of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise.

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

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

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a quarrelling American family who gather for the holidays—including fellow 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 declaring: “They need to make a movie about the true heroes of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the concept, but in practice it’s really a mash-up of those forerunner films, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally comes into her own.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s taken a dip, but happily here’s a new addition in the crowded field of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and highly entertaining—festive fodder.

It’s a story as old as time: An American woman goes on a quest to a distant snowy land and ends up finding romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher