Marathon Viewing The Latest Festive Features: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

‘Tis the season to lounge on the sofa and devour a box of holiday pastries in front of a good movie, a bad movie, or one that’s so bad it’s good.

This year, a batch of new Christmas films hopes to be part of our festive viewing—perhaps even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start).

So, in a helpful attempt to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to find the Christmas spirit, I marathoned as many new Christmas films as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Beginning, optimistically, on a high. This release is the only 2025 title on a popular review site's list of the greatest 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The popular band are stuck in the UK after concluding their international trek and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are thwarted by an villainous Saint Nick, who breaks into song to state they won’t get home until they “rekindle their brotherly magic.”

The back-and-forth between the squabbling siblings is enjoyable even for the uninitiated, while fans will certainly catch lots of in-jokes as they try to get back using any means of transport necessary.

It’s a journey of epic proportions.

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

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

8.45am - Tinsel Town

A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland appears as a movie actor cast a "panto".

“A panto-what??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose representative has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre.

His pantomime co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their retort. Except if you’re not acquainted with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some hilarious moments, some heartwarming side stories, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too.

It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit cheesy at any other time of year, but is a highly enjoyable at Christmas.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

An actor pops up at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the second film in a row. Is this a fresh holiday staple?

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 an actor from Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story develops as the stingy Mr Sood is confronted by the apparitions 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 portrayal is flat—a major flaw when he’s so the main character.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

12.04pm - Stuffed

Before lunch for a channel's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “isn't big on Christmas.”

But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) talks him into spending the sum on a holiday to Lapland.

There’s just one problem—he learns there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to determine how to pay back the remainder.

Fun while it lasts but not lasting.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Early Afternoon: 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 main point—but it feels comfortable and seasonal all the same.

High-powered businesswoman Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is assigned to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a sparkling wine company. En route, she meets a guy in a book store who offers to show her a festive Paris.

An expert recently stated this is the finest new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a holiday love story with a touch of class and gives the required cozy feelings.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

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

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

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun.

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

Pfeiffer opens by name-dropping 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 concept, but in execution it’s really a jumble of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally takes center stage.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s gone downhill, but happily here’s a new addition in the saturated market of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and utterly watchable—seasonal comfort food.

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

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher