Marathon Viewing 2025's Christmas Films: The Hits, The Misses, and The Guilty Pleasures.

It is the season to slob out on the sofa and demolish a box of festive treats in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s so bad it’s good.

As always, a batch of new Christmas films aims to become part of our festive viewing—potentially even earning a place alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start).

So, in a vital public service to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to embrace the festive feeling, I marathoned as many new Christmas films as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Beginning, ideally, on a good foot. This is the exclusive 2025 entry on a well-known aggregator's list of the top 100 festive features of all time.

The Jonas Brothers end up stranded in the UK after concluding their international trek and must return for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who breaks into song to state they won’t get home until they “rekindle their familial spark.”

The repartee between the arguing trio is amusing even for the casual viewer, while followers will no doubt notice lots of references as they try to get back using all transportation available.

It’s a travelogue of mishaps.

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

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

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a celebrity cast a "panto".

“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 representative has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre.

His Aladdin co-stars tell him he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their retort. Except if you’re ignorant of traditional British theatre traditions.

There are some very funny lines, some heartwarming side stories, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too.

It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at any other time of year, but is a highly enjoyable at Christmas.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

Danny Dyer pops up at the beginning of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the second film in a row. Is this a new Christmas tradition?

This time, he’s a singing black cab driver who encounters Mr Sood, the newest interpretation 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 Bend It Like Beckham’s Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is haunted by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This cultural adaptation is at least different from all the others, but regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s acting is lifeless—a major flaw when he’s so the main character.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

12.04pm - Stuffed

There's just enough time for a major broadcaster's original festive film—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) convinces him blowing the money on a vacation to Lapland.

There’s just one problem—he finds out there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to pay back the difference.

Pleasant yet unmemorable.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

1.12pm - Champagne Problems

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

High-powered businesswoman Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is assigned to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a champagne business. En route, she meets a fellow in a bookshop who vows to show her the holidays in the City of Light.

An expert recently declared this is the finest new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a holiday love story with a touch of class and gives the obligatory cozy feelings.

The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is notable too.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, despite the efforts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him the truth.

The truth is to be discovered, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the guidance of a team of well-known experts and celebrities.

It’s gentle but endearing, and good viewing while waiting for Santa to visit.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a quarrelling American family who gather for the holidays—including fellow acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary.

Pfeiffer begins by referencing 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 unsung heroes of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the concept, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last finds her strength.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new addition in the packed genre of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and strangely compelling—holiday fare.

It’s a narrative as well-worn: An American woman journeys to a distant snowy land and ends up discovering romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher