Devouring 2025's Festive Features: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

‘Tis the time of year to lounge on the sofa and demolish a box of festive treats in front of a great film, a bad movie, or one that’s so bad it’s good.

This year, a batch of new Christmas films hopes to be part of our seasonal watchlist—maybe even joining the ranks alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Thus, in a helpful attempt to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to get into the holiday mood, I watched as many new Christmas films as possible in a single day.

Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Starting, optimistically, on a positive note. This film is the exclusive 2025 entry on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 festive features of all time.

The popular band are stranded in the UK after finishing their international trek and must get home for Christmas. Their efforts are hampered by an evil Santa, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their sibling bond.”

The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is amusing even for the non-fan, while followers will no doubt pick up on lots of easter eggs as they attempt to get back using any means of transport necessary.

It’s a journey of epic proportions.

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

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who will have to sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland appears as a Hollywood star cast a pantomime.

“A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and older star Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose representative has deceived him into thinking he’s performing in high-class London stage.

His pantomime co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he protests. It's easy to predict their retort. That is, unless you’re not acquainted with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some great jokes, some touching sub-plots, and the ensemble is excellent, too.

It’s the kind of movie 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, calling someone a mug for the second consecutive movie. Could this be a fresh holiday staple?

This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who picks up 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 filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is haunted by the apparitions of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This Indian Scrooge is at least distinct from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s performance is flat—a significant issue when he’s so the main character.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

12.04pm - Stuffed

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

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

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

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

1.12pm - Champagne Problems

This is one of those holiday movies where the decorations and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its core purpose—but it feels cosy and festive all the same.

Driven corporate star Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a sparkling wine company. En route, she encounters a man in a book store who offers to show her a festive Paris.

A critic recently declared this is the top new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a Christmas romance with a dash of elegance and gives the necessary cozy feelings.

The scene with a extended debate about Die Hard is particularly strong too.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Afternoon: Finding Father Christmas

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, regardless of the attempts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality.

The truth is out there, and Chris sets out to find it with the expert help of a group of well-known figures.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a quarrelling American family who come back together for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary.

Pfeiffer starts by mentioning 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 practice it’s really a jumble of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually takes center stage.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Formulaic Fun

The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new addition in the packed genre of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and utterly watchable—seasonal comfort food.

It’s a tale as old as time: An American woman travels to a far-off wintery locale and ends up stumbling across romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher