Binge-Watching This Year's Festive Features: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights.

‘Tis the season to lounge on the sofa and devour a tin of festive treats in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s awesomely awful.

As always, a crop of new Christmas films aims to become part of our festive viewing—maybe even joining the ranks 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 embrace the holiday mood, I marathoned as many new holiday releases as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Kicking off, optimistically, on a high. This is the exclusive 2025 movie on a popular review site's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The musical trio find themselves stranded in the UK after concluding their global concert series and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are hindered by an evil Santa, who bursts into melody to state they won’t get home until they “rediscover their brotherly magic.”

The back-and-forth between the bickering brothers is entertaining even for the casual viewer, while followers will no doubt pick up on lots of references as they attempt to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s a travelogue of mishaps.

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

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their family members who are obliged to sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a Hollywood star cast a traditional British stage show.

“A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and older action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose agent has misled him into thinking he’s appearing in renowned British drama.

His pantomime co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he insists angrily. You can guess their retort. That is, unless you’re not acquainted with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming side stories, and the ensemble is brilliant, too.

It’s the type of film that would be a bit tacky at a different time, but is a great entertainment at Christmas.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

Danny Dyer appears at the start of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the next movie straight. Is this a fresh holiday staple?

This time, he’s a singing black cab driver who picks up Mr Sood, the modern take 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 unfolds as the stingy Mr Sood is haunted by the ghosts of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, 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 wooden—a significant issue when he’s so the focal point.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Lunchtime: Stuffed

There's just enough time for a channel's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.”

But after he is awarded an sizable holiday payout at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) persuades him splurging the cash on a holiday 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 figure out how to return the excess.

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Early Afternoon: Champagne Problems

This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same.

Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a vineyard to secure an acquisition for a champagne business. En route, she meets a guy in a book store who vows to show her the holidays in the City of Light.

A critic recently claimed this is the top new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a holiday love story with a dash of elegance and gives the required warm and fuzzy feels.

The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is particularly strong too.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, refuses to stop believing in Father Christmas, despite the efforts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him the reality.

The secret is somewhere, and Chris sets out to find it with the expert help of a group of well-known scientists and personalities.

It’s low-key but charming, and perfect viewing while anticipating Santa to visit.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Star-Studded Family Drama

Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a dysfunctional 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 Christmas classics 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 what this is, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually comes into her own.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new entry in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and strangely compelling—holiday fare.

It’s a narrative as well-worn: 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