🔗 Share this article Marathon Viewing 2025's Christmas Films: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good. It is the season to slob out on the sofa and consume a box of holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. As always, a crop of fresh holiday movies hopes to be part of our festive viewing—maybe even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it). Therefore, in a vital public service 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. 7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Beginning, hopefully, on a positive note. This film is the exclusive 2025 movie on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 festive features of all time. The musical trio end up stuck in the UK after wrapping up their international trek and must make it back for Christmas. Their endeavors 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 repartee between the bickering brothers is amusing even for the non-fan, while followers will undoubtedly pick up on lots of in-jokes as they endeavor to get back using all transportation available. It’s private planes, trains and automobiles. It’s not an all-time classic, but is great for devotees and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it. 8.45am - Tinsel Town Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland appears as a Hollywood star tricked into a traditional British stage show. “A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and aging action hero Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose manager has misled him into thinking he’s performing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime fellow actors let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he protests. One can imagine their retort. Unless 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 sort of feature that would be a bit cheesy at a different time, but is a great entertainment at Christmas. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge An actor appears at the outset 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 collects Mr Sood, the latest spin 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 progresses as the stingy Mr Sood is visited by the ghosts of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least unique from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s acting is flat—a major flaw when he’s so the main character. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Noon: A BBC Special Before lunch for a network's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “avoids Christmas.” But after he is awarded an large festive windfall at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) convinces him splurging the cash on a family trip to Lapland. There’s just one snag—he finds out 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 difference. Enjoyable but forgettable. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the backdrop—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels comfortable and seasonal all the same. High-powered businesswoman Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a French chateau to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she encounters a fellow in a bookshop who offers to show her Christmas in Paris. A commentator recently stated this is the finest new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a holiday love story with a dash of elegance and gives the required heartwarming sensation. The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is particularly strong too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, refuses to stop believing in Father Christmas, regardless of the attempts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known figures. It’s understated but charming, and ideal viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a bickering American family who gather for the holidays—including other 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 real champions of the holidays—moms.” So that’s the premise, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those forerunner films, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually comes into her own. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new offering in the packed genre of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and highly entertaining—seasonal comfort food. It’s a tale as well-worn: An American woman travels to a distant snowy land and ends up discovering romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
It is the season to slob out on the sofa and consume a box of holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. As always, a crop of fresh holiday movies hopes to be part of our festive viewing—maybe even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it). Therefore, in a vital public service 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. 7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Beginning, hopefully, on a positive note. This film is the exclusive 2025 movie on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 festive features of all time. The musical trio end up stuck in the UK after wrapping up their international trek and must make it back for Christmas. Their endeavors 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 repartee between the bickering brothers is amusing even for the non-fan, while followers will undoubtedly pick up on lots of in-jokes as they endeavor to get back using all transportation available. It’s private planes, trains and automobiles. It’s not an all-time classic, but is great for devotees and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it. 8.45am - Tinsel Town Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland appears as a Hollywood star tricked into a traditional British stage show. “A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and aging action hero Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose manager has misled him into thinking he’s performing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime fellow actors let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he protests. One can imagine their retort. Unless 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 sort of feature that would be a bit cheesy at a different time, but is a great entertainment at Christmas. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge An actor appears at the outset 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 collects Mr Sood, the latest spin 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 progresses as the stingy Mr Sood is visited by the ghosts of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least unique from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s acting is flat—a major flaw when he’s so the main character. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Noon: A BBC Special Before lunch for a network's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “avoids Christmas.” But after he is awarded an large festive windfall at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) convinces him splurging the cash on a family trip to Lapland. There’s just one snag—he finds out 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 difference. Enjoyable but forgettable. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the backdrop—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels comfortable and seasonal all the same. High-powered businesswoman Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a French chateau to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she encounters a fellow in a bookshop who offers to show her Christmas in Paris. A commentator recently stated this is the finest new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a holiday love story with a dash of elegance and gives the required heartwarming sensation. The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is particularly strong too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, refuses to stop believing in Father Christmas, regardless of the attempts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known figures. It’s understated but charming, and ideal viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a bickering American family who gather for the holidays—including other 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 real champions of the holidays—moms.” So that’s the premise, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those forerunner films, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually comes into her own. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new offering in the packed genre of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and highly entertaining—seasonal comfort food. It’s a tale as well-worn: An American woman travels to a distant snowy land and ends up discovering romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher