Devouring 2025's Holiday Movies: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

‘Tis the time of year to lounge on the couch and consume a packet of mince pies in front of a good movie, a awful feature, or one that’s awesomely awful.

Once again, a batch of fresh seasonal stories hopes to be part of our seasonal watchlist—perhaps even finding a spot alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Thus, in a vital public service to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to find the festive feeling, I binged as many recent holiday releases as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Beginning, ideally, on a high. This is the only 2025 movie on a famous website's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The musical trio are stranded in the UK after wrapping up their world tour and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an evil Santa, who sings to declare they won’t get home until they “find their sibling bond.”

The banter between the squabbling siblings is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while followers will no doubt pick up on lots of in-jokes as they attempt to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s a travelogue of mishaps.

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

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland appears as a movie actor tricked into a "panto".

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and older star Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose representative has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in renowned British drama.

His Aladdin fellow actors inform him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their reply. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response.

There are some hilarious moments, some touching storylines, and the ensemble is brilliant, too.

It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit cheesy at another season, but is a lot of fun at Christmas.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

A familiar face appears at the outset of this film, too, insulting someone for the second consecutive movie. Might this become a new Christmas tradition?

This time, he’s a singing black cab driver who encounters Mr Sood, the modern take 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 unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is haunted by the ghosts of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This South Asian reinterpretation is at least unique from all the others, but sadly he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s performance is flat—a major flaw when he’s so central to everything.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

Before lunch for a major broadcaster's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.”

But after he is awarded an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) talks him into spending the sum on a family trip to Lapland.

There’s just one issue—he finds out there was an mistake with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to reimburse the excess.

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

A Classy Netflix Romance

This is one of those Christmas films where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the background—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its main point—but it feels cosy and festive all the same.

High-powered businesswoman Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she encounters a man in a bookshop who offers to show her Christmas in Paris.

A critic recently stated this is the finest new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a Christmas romance with a hint of sophistication and gives the required heartwarming sensation.

The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is very good too.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, in spite of the persuasion of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him the truth.

The truth is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the assistance of a team of well-known scientists and personalities.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Star-Studded Family Drama

Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a quarrelling American family who come back together for the holidays—including fellow 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 real champions of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s what this is, but in execution it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s gone downhill, but thankfully here’s a new entry in the crowded field of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and highly entertaining—seasonal comfort food.

It’s a tale as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a picturesque cold country and ends up discovering romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher