🔗 Share this article Marathon Viewing 2025's Holiday Movies: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights. It is the season to slob out on the couch and devour a box of festive treats in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. As always, a selection of latest seasonal stories hopes to be part of our festive viewing—potentially even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Thus, in a helpful attempt to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to get into the Christmas spirit, I watched as many fresh holiday releases as possible in a single day. 7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Kicking off, hopefully, on a positive note. This release is the exclusive 2025 title on a well-known aggregator's list of the best 100 Christmas movies of all time. The Jonas Brothers end up trapped in the UK after finishing their international trek and must get home for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who breaks into song to announce they won’t get home until they “rekindle their sibling bond.” The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while followers will undoubtedly notice lots of in-jokes as they attempt to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a journey of epic proportions. It’s not an all-time classic, but is superb for fans and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it. Next: A Star in Panto A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor cast a traditional British stage show. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and older action hero Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose agent has misled him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime cast-mates inform him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their retort. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional panto catchphrases. There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming sub-plots, and the ensemble is brilliant, too. It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit naff at any other time of year, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma A familiar face appears at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the second consecutive movie. Might this become a fresh holiday staple? This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who collects 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 director of Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is confronted by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least distinct from all the others, but sadly he’s not very compelling and Nayyar’s performance is wooden—a problem when he’s so central to everything. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed There's just enough time for a network's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he receives an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) talks him into splurging the cash on a holiday to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he discovers there was an mistake with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to reimburse the excess. Pleasant yet unmemorable. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those Christmas films where the festive trappings are in the backdrop—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its main point—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Driven corporate star Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is assigned to a country estate to negotiate a purchase for a champagne business. During her travels, she encounters a guy in a book store who promises to show her Christmas in Paris. A critic recently claimed this is the finest new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a holiday love story with a touch of class and gives the obligatory warm and fuzzy feels. The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is particularly strong too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, despite the attempts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The truth is out there, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the assistance of a team of well-known experts and celebrities. It’s understated but endearing, and perfect viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a bickering American family who come back together for the holidays—including fellow Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer opens by name-dropping 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 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 eventually comes into her own. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new entry in the packed genre of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and utterly watchable—festive fodder. It’s a story as old as time: An American woman goes on a quest to a far-off wintery locale and ends up discovering romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
It is the season to slob out on the couch and devour a box of festive treats in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. As always, a selection of latest seasonal stories hopes to be part of our festive viewing—potentially even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Thus, in a helpful attempt to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to get into the Christmas spirit, I watched as many fresh holiday releases as possible in a single day. 7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Kicking off, hopefully, on a positive note. This release is the exclusive 2025 title on a well-known aggregator's list of the best 100 Christmas movies of all time. The Jonas Brothers end up trapped in the UK after finishing their international trek and must get home for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who breaks into song to announce they won’t get home until they “rekindle their sibling bond.” The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while followers will undoubtedly notice lots of in-jokes as they attempt to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a journey of epic proportions. It’s not an all-time classic, but is superb for fans and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it. Next: A Star in Panto A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor cast a traditional British stage show. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and older action hero Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose agent has misled him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime cast-mates inform him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their retort. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional panto catchphrases. There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming sub-plots, and the ensemble is brilliant, too. It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit naff at any other time of year, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma A familiar face appears at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the second consecutive movie. Might this become a fresh holiday staple? This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who collects 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 director of Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is confronted by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least distinct from all the others, but sadly he’s not very compelling and Nayyar’s performance is wooden—a problem when he’s so central to everything. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed There's just enough time for a network's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he receives an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) talks him into splurging the cash on a holiday to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he discovers there was an mistake with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to reimburse the excess. Pleasant yet unmemorable. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those Christmas films where the festive trappings are in the backdrop—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its main point—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Driven corporate star Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is assigned to a country estate to negotiate a purchase for a champagne business. During her travels, she encounters a guy in a book store who promises to show her Christmas in Paris. A critic recently claimed this is the finest new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a holiday love story with a touch of class and gives the obligatory warm and fuzzy feels. The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is particularly strong too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, despite the attempts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The truth is out there, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the assistance of a team of well-known experts and celebrities. It’s understated but endearing, and perfect viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a bickering American family who come back together for the holidays—including fellow Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer opens by name-dropping 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 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 eventually comes into her own. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new entry in the packed genre of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and utterly watchable—festive fodder. It’s a story as old as time: An American woman goes on a quest to a far-off wintery locale and ends up discovering romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher