🔗 Share this article Marathon Viewing 2025's Festive Features: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights. ‘Tis the season to lounge on the sofa and demolish a box of mince pies in front of a great film, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful. As always, a batch of new Christmas films hopes to be part of our festive viewing—perhaps even joining the ranks alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Therefore, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to find the Christmas spirit, I watched as many fresh Christmas films as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Starting, hopefully, on a positive note. This film is the exclusive 2025 movie on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The Jonas Brothers are trapped in the UK after wrapping up their world tour and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an villainous Saint Nick, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “find their brotherly magic.” The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is amusing even for the uninitiated, while devotees will no doubt notice lots of references as they try to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not legendary, but is great for devotees and a good start to the day. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their loved ones who are obliged to sit through it. Late Morning: Tinsel Town A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland stars as a Hollywood star roped into a traditional British stage show. “A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing star Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose manager has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in high-class London stage. His pantomime co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he retorts. You can guess their response. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional British theatre traditions. There are some very funny lines, some touching storylines, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit cheesy at a different time, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 10.19am - Christmas Karma A familiar face appears at the outset of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the next movie straight. Is this a new Christmas tradition? This time, he’s a singing black cab driver who picks up Mr Sood, the newest interpretation 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 filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is confronted 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 lifeless—a problem when he’s so the focal point. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 12.04pm - Stuffed Before lunch for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “avoids Christmas.” But after he gets an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) talks him into splurging the cash 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 determine how to return the excess. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance This is one of those holiday movies where the festive trappings are in the backdrop—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its main point—but it feels cosy and festive all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is assigned to a country estate to secure an acquisition 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 recent era. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a festive dalliance with a dash of elegance and gives the necessary heartwarming sensation. The scene with a lengthy discussion 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 efforts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the assistance of a panel of well-known figures. It’s low-key but endearing, and ideal viewing while waiting for Santa to visit. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a bickering American family who come back together for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing 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 unsung heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s what this is, but in execution it’s really a combination of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally finds her strength. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new addition in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and strangely compelling—seasonal comfort food. It’s a narrative as well-worn: An American woman journeys to a far-off wintery locale and ends up finding romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
‘Tis the season to lounge on the sofa and demolish a box of mince pies in front of a great film, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful. As always, a batch of new Christmas films hopes to be part of our festive viewing—perhaps even joining the ranks alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Therefore, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to find the Christmas spirit, I watched as many fresh Christmas films as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Starting, hopefully, on a positive note. This film is the exclusive 2025 movie on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The Jonas Brothers are trapped in the UK after wrapping up their world tour and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an villainous Saint Nick, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “find their brotherly magic.” The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is amusing even for the uninitiated, while devotees will no doubt notice lots of references as they try to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not legendary, but is great for devotees and a good start to the day. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their loved ones who are obliged to sit through it. Late Morning: Tinsel Town A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland stars as a Hollywood star roped into a traditional British stage show. “A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing star Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose manager has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in high-class London stage. His pantomime co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he retorts. You can guess their response. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional British theatre traditions. There are some very funny lines, some touching storylines, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit cheesy at a different time, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 10.19am - Christmas Karma A familiar face appears at the outset of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the next movie straight. Is this a new Christmas tradition? This time, he’s a singing black cab driver who picks up Mr Sood, the newest interpretation 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 filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is confronted 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 lifeless—a problem when he’s so the focal point. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 12.04pm - Stuffed Before lunch for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “avoids Christmas.” But after he gets an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) talks him into splurging the cash 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 determine how to return the excess. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance This is one of those holiday movies where the festive trappings are in the backdrop—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its main point—but it feels cosy and festive all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is assigned to a country estate to secure an acquisition 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 recent era. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a festive dalliance with a dash of elegance and gives the necessary heartwarming sensation. The scene with a lengthy discussion 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 efforts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the assistance of a panel of well-known figures. It’s low-key but endearing, and ideal viewing while waiting for Santa to visit. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a bickering American family who come back together for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing 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 unsung heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s what this is, but in execution it’s really a combination of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally finds her strength. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new addition in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and strangely compelling—seasonal comfort food. It’s a narrative as well-worn: An American woman journeys to a far-off wintery locale and ends up finding romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher