Marathon Viewing The Latest Festive Features: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

‘Tis the season to slob out on the sofa and consume a tin of festive treats in front of a good movie, a poor film, or one that’s terrible yet terrific.

As always, a selection of latest holiday movies hopes to be part of our seasonal watchlist—maybe even finding a spot alongside enduring classics like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Therefore, in a helpful attempt to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to embrace the festive feeling, I marathoned as many recent festive movies as possible in a single day.

7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Kicking off, ideally, on a positive note. This release is the exclusive 2025 title on a well-known aggregator's list of the top 100 holiday films of all time.

The popular band end up trapped in the UK after finishing their international trek and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are hindered by an villainous Saint Nick, who bursts into melody to state they won’t get home until they “find their familial spark.”

The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the casual viewer, while fans will no doubt catch lots of easter eggs as they try to get back using any means of transport necessary.

It’s private planes, trains and automobiles.

It’s not an all-time classic, but is excellent for fans and a good start to the day.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor roped into a pantomime.

“A panto-what??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing star Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose agent has misled him into thinking he’s performing in prestigious English theatre.

His Aladdin cast-mates tell him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he retorts. One can imagine their retort. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some great jokes, some cockle-warming sub-plots, and the ensemble is brilliant, too.

It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at a different time, but is a lot of fun at Christmas.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

A familiar face shows up at the outset 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 encounters 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 confronted by the apparitions of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This cultural adaptation is at least unique from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s portrayal is flat—a problem when he’s so the focal point.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

There’s time for a network's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “avoids Christmas.”

But after he gets an sizable holiday payout at work, his wife (starring Morgana Robinson) talks him into spending the sum 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 devise a plan for how to pay back the difference.

Pleasant yet unmemorable.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Early Afternoon: Champagne Problems

This is one of those Christmas films where the decorations and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels cosy and festive all the same.

Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a vineyard to secure an acquisition for a sparkling wine company. En route, she meets a fellow in a bookshop who promises to show her the holidays in the City of Light.

A critic recently stated this is the best new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a holiday love story with a hint of sophistication and gives the required warm and fuzzy feels.

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

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄

3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas

Teenage Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, despite the efforts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise.

The secret is somewhere, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the expert help of a panel of well-known experts and celebrities.

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 bickering American family who come back together for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee 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 concept, but in reality it’s really a mash-up of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually takes center stage.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s gone downhill, but happily here’s a new addition in the packed genre of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and utterly watchable—festive fodder.

It’s a tale as familiar as can be: An American woman journeys to a distant snowy land and ends up stumbling across romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher