Devouring This Year's Christmas Films: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

It is the time of year to relax on the sofa and devour a tin of holiday pastries in front of a great film, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific.

As always, a batch of latest holiday movies strives to join part of our seasonal watchlist—perhaps even earning a place alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it).

So, in a noble effort to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to get into the festive feeling, I binged as many fresh holiday releases as possible in a single day.

First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick

Starting, ideally, on a good foot. This film is the only 2025 entry on a popular review site's list of the best 100 festive features of all time.

The musical trio are stranded in the UK after wrapping up their world tour and must return for Christmas. Their attempts are hindered by an evil Santa, who breaks into song to state they won’t get home until they “rekindle their familial spark.”

The banter between the arguing trio is enjoyable even for the uninitiated, while followers will certainly catch lots of in-jokes as they endeavor to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s a travelogue of mishaps.

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

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

Next: A Star in Panto

Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland stars as a celebrity cast a traditional British stage show.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and ageing action hero Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose manager has tricked him into thinking he’s performing in prestigious English theatre.

His pantomime co-stars tell him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he protests. It's easy to predict their reply. Except if you’re ignorant of traditional British theatre traditions.

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

It’s the kind of movie that would be a bit naff at another season, but is a highly enjoyable at Christmas.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

Danny Dyer pops up at the outset of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the next movie straight. Is this a budding festive ritual?

This time, he’s a musical taxi operator 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 director of Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale unfolds as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is visited by the spirits 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 regrettably he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s performance is wooden—a significant issue when he’s so the main character.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Lunchtime: Stuffed

Before lunch for a network's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “doesn’t really do Christmas.”

But after he is awarded an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) convinces him blowing the money on a holiday to Lapland.

There’s just one snag—he discovers there was an error with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to determine how to return the excess.

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

A Classy Netflix Romance

This is one of those Christmas films where the festive trappings are in the backdrop—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels comfortable and seasonal all the same.

Ambitious executive Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to negotiate a purchase for a champagne business. On the way, she runs into a fellow in a book store who offers to show her the holidays in the City of Light.

A commentator recently declared this is the top new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a Christmas romance with a touch of class and gives the necessary heartwarming sensation.

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

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, refuses to stop believing in Father Christmas, regardless of the attempts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the truth.

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 endearing, and good viewing while anticipating Santa to visit.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄

A Star-Studded Family Drama

Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a bickering American family who reunite for the holidays—including other Oscar nominee 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 real champions of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the premise, but in practice it’s really a mash-up of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last comes into her own.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s waned in quality, but thankfully here’s a new addition in the saturated market of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and utterly watchable—holiday fare.

It’s a tale as familiar as can be: An American woman goes on a quest to a distant snowy land and ends up finding romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher