🔗 Share this article Binge-Watching The Latest Holiday Movies: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good. It is the season to lounge on the sofa and devour a tin of holiday pastries in front of a great film, a awful feature, or one that’s awesomely awful. As always, a batch of new seasonal stories hopes to be part of our festive viewing—potentially even finding a spot alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments). Thus, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to find the holiday mood, I watched as many recent holiday releases as possible in a single day. 7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Beginning, ideally, on a good foot. This is the only 2025 movie on a famous website's list of the top 100 holiday films of all time. The musical trio end up stranded in the UK after concluding their world tour and must return for Christmas. Their attempts are thwarted by an villainous Saint Nick, who bursts into melody to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their brotherly magic.” The banter between the bickering brothers is enjoyable even for the casual viewer, while followers will certainly catch lots of in-jokes as they endeavor to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a journey of epic proportions. It’s not legendary, but is great for devotees and a positive 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 A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor tricked into a pantomime. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing lead Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose agent has tricked him into thinking he’s performing in high-class London stage. His Aladdin cast-mates tell him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he protests. One can imagine their retort. That is, unless you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response. There are some hilarious moments, some cockle-warming sub-plots, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit naff 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 start of this film, too, insulting someone for the second film in a row. Is this a budding festive ritual? This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who encounters Mr Sood, the newest interpretation on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Mr Sood is played by The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by Bend It Like Beckham’s Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative unfolds as the stingy Mr Sood is visited by the spirits of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This South Asian reinterpretation is at least distinct from all the others, but sadly he’s not very compelling and Nayyar’s portrayal is lifeless—a major flaw when he’s so central to everything. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed There's just enough time for a channel's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) convinces him spending the sum on a holiday 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 difference. Pleasant yet unmemorable. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels cosy and festive all the same. High-powered businesswoman Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is assigned to a French chateau to negotiate a purchase for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she encounters a guy in a bookshop who offers to show her the holidays in the City of Light. A critic recently declared this is the finest new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the necessary warm and fuzzy feels. The scene with a extended debate 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 attempts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The secret is out there, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known figures. It’s understated but endearing, and perfect viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a bickering American family who gather for the holidays—including other 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 stating: “They need to make a movie about the unsung heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s what this is, but in reality it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally comes into her own. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but fortunately here’s a new entry in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and utterly watchable—holiday fare. It’s a tale as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a distant snowy land and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
It is the season to lounge on the sofa and devour a tin of holiday pastries in front of a great film, a awful feature, or one that’s awesomely awful. As always, a batch of new seasonal stories hopes to be part of our festive viewing—potentially even finding a spot alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments). Thus, in a helpful attempt to separate the winners from the losers, and to find the holiday mood, I watched as many recent holiday releases as possible in a single day. 7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Beginning, ideally, on a good foot. This is the only 2025 movie on a famous website's list of the top 100 holiday films of all time. The musical trio end up stranded in the UK after concluding their world tour and must return for Christmas. Their attempts are thwarted by an villainous Saint Nick, who bursts into melody to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their brotherly magic.” The banter between the bickering brothers is enjoyable even for the casual viewer, while followers will certainly catch lots of in-jokes as they endeavor to get back using any means of transport necessary. It’s a journey of epic proportions. It’s not legendary, but is great for devotees and a positive 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 A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland stars as a movie actor tricked into a pantomime. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing lead Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose agent has tricked him into thinking he’s performing in high-class London stage. His Aladdin cast-mates tell him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he protests. One can imagine their retort. That is, unless you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response. There are some hilarious moments, some cockle-warming sub-plots, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit naff 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 start of this film, too, insulting someone for the second film in a row. Is this a budding festive ritual? This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who encounters Mr Sood, the newest interpretation on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Mr Sood is played by The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by Bend It Like Beckham’s Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative unfolds as the stingy Mr Sood is visited by the spirits of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This South Asian reinterpretation is at least distinct from all the others, but sadly he’s not very compelling and Nayyar’s portrayal is lifeless—a major flaw when he’s so central to everything. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed There's just enough time for a channel's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) convinces him spending the sum on a holiday 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 difference. Pleasant yet unmemorable. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the scene of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels cosy and festive all the same. High-powered businesswoman Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is assigned to a French chateau to negotiate a purchase for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she encounters a guy in a bookshop who offers to show her the holidays in the City of Light. A critic recently declared this is the finest new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the necessary warm and fuzzy feels. The scene with a extended debate 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 attempts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The secret is out there, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known figures. It’s understated but endearing, and perfect viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a bickering American family who gather for the holidays—including other 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 stating: “They need to make a movie about the unsung heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s what this is, but in reality it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character finally comes into her own. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but fortunately here’s a new entry in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and utterly watchable—holiday fare. It’s a tale as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a distant snowy land and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher