🔗 Share this article Binge-Watching This Year's Holiday Movies: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights. ‘Tis the time of year to relax on the couch and devour a box of mince pies in front of a great film, a bad movie, or one that’s awesomely awful. This year, a batch of latest holiday movies aims to become part of our holiday traditions—perhaps even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments). Therefore, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to get into the Christmas spirit, I marathoned as many fresh holiday releases as possible in a single day. Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Beginning, ideally, on a positive note. This is the only 2025 entry on a popular review site's list of the top 100 festive features of all time. The Jonas Brothers find themselves trapped in the UK after concluding their international trek and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are hindered by an evil Santa, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their brotherly magic.” The banter between the arguing trio is amusing even for the non-fan, while fans will certainly pick up on lots of in-jokes as they attempt to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not an all-time classic, but is excellent for fans and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their family members who must sit through it. Next: A Star in Panto Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland stars as a celebrity roped into a "panto". “A panto-what??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and aging star Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose agent has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre. His Aladdin co-stars inform him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he protests. You can guess their reply. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response. There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming storylines, and the rest of the cast is cracking, too. It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit naff at a different time, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 10.19am - Christmas Karma A familiar face shows up at the start of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the next movie straight. Could this be a new Christmas tradition? This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who collects 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 progresses as the miserly Mr Sood is confronted by the spirits of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least different from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s acting is flat—a problem when he’s so the main character. Festive score: 🎄🎄 12.04pm - Stuffed There's just enough time for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) persuades him spending the sum on a vacation to Lapland. There’s just one issue—he finds out there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to determine how to reimburse the difference. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance 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 cosy and festive all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she runs into a fellow in a bookshop who promises to show her a festive Paris. An expert recently declared this is the finest new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the required cozy feelings. The scene with a extended debate about Die Hard is particularly strong too. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas 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 truth. The secret is somewhere, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the guidance of a team of well-known scientists and personalities. It’s understated but endearing, and good viewing while anticipating Santa to visit. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a quarrelling American family who gather for the holidays—including fellow Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing holiday staples like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before saying: “They need to make a movie about the unsung 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 at last comes into her own. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but happily here’s a new offering in the crowded field of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and strangely compelling—festive fodder. It’s a narrative as well-worn: An American woman goes on a quest to a far-off wintery locale and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
‘Tis the time of year to relax on the couch and devour a box of mince pies in front of a great film, a bad movie, or one that’s awesomely awful. This year, a batch of latest holiday movies aims to become part of our holiday traditions—perhaps even finding a spot alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments). Therefore, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to get into the Christmas spirit, I marathoned as many fresh holiday releases as possible in a single day. Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Beginning, ideally, on a positive note. This is the only 2025 entry on a popular review site's list of the top 100 festive features of all time. The Jonas Brothers find themselves trapped in the UK after concluding their international trek and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are hindered by an evil Santa, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their brotherly magic.” The banter between the arguing trio is amusing even for the non-fan, while fans will certainly pick up on lots of in-jokes as they attempt to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not an all-time classic, but is excellent for fans and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their family members who must sit through it. Next: A Star in Panto Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland stars as a celebrity roped into a "panto". “A panto-what??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and aging star Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose agent has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre. His Aladdin co-stars inform him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he protests. You can guess their reply. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response. There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming storylines, and the rest of the cast is cracking, too. It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit naff at a different time, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 10.19am - Christmas Karma A familiar face shows up at the start of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the next movie straight. Could this be a new Christmas tradition? This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who collects 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 progresses as the miserly Mr Sood is confronted by the spirits of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This Indian Scrooge is at least different from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s acting is flat—a problem when he’s so the main character. Festive score: 🎄🎄 12.04pm - Stuffed There's just enough time for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) persuades him spending the sum on a vacation to Lapland. There’s just one issue—he finds out there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to determine how to reimburse the difference. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance 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 cosy and festive all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she runs into a fellow in a bookshop who promises to show her a festive Paris. An expert recently declared this is the finest new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the required cozy feelings. The scene with a extended debate about Die Hard is particularly strong too. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas 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 truth. The secret is somewhere, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the guidance of a team of well-known scientists and personalities. It’s understated but endearing, and good viewing while anticipating Santa to visit. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 Late Afternoon: Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a quarrelling American family who gather for the holidays—including fellow Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing holiday staples like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before saying: “They need to make a movie about the unsung 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 at last comes into her own. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but happily here’s a new offering in the crowded field of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and strangely compelling—festive fodder. It’s a narrative as well-worn: An American woman goes on a quest to a far-off wintery locale and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher