Marathon Viewing The Latest Holiday Movies: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

It is the season to relax on the sofa and demolish a box of mince pies in front of a terrific flick, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful.

This year, a selection of new seasonal stories hopes to be part of our holiday traditions—potentially even joining the ranks alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Thus, in a vital public service to separate the winners from the losers, and to embrace the festive feeling, I marathoned as many recent festive movies as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Kicking off, hopefully, on a good foot. This release is the sole 2025 title on a well-known aggregator's list of the best 100 festive features of all time.

The musical trio find themselves stuck in the UK after wrapping up their world tour and must make it back for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an villainous Saint Nick, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “rekindle their brotherly magic.”

The repartee between the squabbling siblings is amusing even for the non-fan, while fans will no doubt catch lots of easter eggs as they endeavor to get back using any means of transport necessary.

It’s private planes, trains and automobiles.

It’s not legendary, but is excellent for devotees 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.

8.45am - Tinsel Town

Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor cast a "panto".

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

His pantomime fellow actors let him know he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he insists angrily. It's easy to predict their response. Except if you’re not acquainted with traditional stage call-and-response.

There are some very funny lines, some touching side stories, and the ensemble is excellent, too.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

An actor shows up at the start of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the second consecutive movie. Might this become a new Christmas tradition?

This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who encounters Mr Sood, the latest spin 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 classic narrative unfolds as the stingy Mr Sood is visited 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 distinct from all the others, but sadly he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s acting is lifeless—a significant issue when he’s so the main character.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

There's just enough time for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “avoids Christmas.”

But after he is awarded an sizable holiday payout at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) persuades him splurging the cash on a family trip 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 determine how to return the difference.

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

1.12pm - 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 warm and holiday-like all the same.

High-powered businesswoman Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a country estate to negotiate a purchase for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she meets a man in a bookshop who offers to show her the holidays in the City of Light.

A commentator recently stated this is the finest new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a holiday love story with a hint of sophistication and gives the required heartwarming sensation.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas

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

The truth is somewhere, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the guidance of a team of well-known scientists and personalities.

It’s understated but sweet, and good viewing while waiting for Santa to visit.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a dysfunctional American family who gather for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee 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 declaring: “They need to make a movie about the real champions of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s what this is, but in execution it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally finds her strength.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s taken a dip, but happily here’s a new offering in the packed genre of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and strangely compelling—holiday fare.

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

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher