Devouring This Year's Holiday Movies: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights.

‘Tis the time of year to slob out on the sofa and devour a box of holiday pastries in front of a good movie, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific.

As always, a batch of fresh Christmas films hopes to be part of our holiday traditions—potentially even earning a place alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

So, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to embrace the Christmas spirit, I marathoned as many recent holiday releases as possible in a single day.

7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Kicking off, ideally, on a high. This film is the only 2025 title on a popular review site's list of the top 100 festive features of all time.

The musical trio are stranded in the UK after finishing their global concert series and must return for Christmas. Their endeavors are hampered by an evil Santa, who sings to state they won’t get home until they “find their brotherly magic.”

The back-and-forth between the bickering brothers is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while devotees will undoubtedly catch lots of references as they attempt to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s a journey of epic proportions.

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

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

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland appears as a movie actor cast a traditional British stage show.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and aging star Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose representative has tricked him into thinking he’s performing in renowned British drama.

His pantomime co-stars let him know he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he protests. One can imagine their response. Unless you’re unfamiliar with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some great jokes, some heartwarming sub-plots, and the supporting actors is excellent, too.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

An actor appears at the outset of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the second film in a row. Might this become a new Christmas tradition?

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 the director of Gurinder Chadha. The well-known tale progresses as the stingy Mr Sood is visited by the ghosts 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 compelling and Nayyar’s performance is wooden—a major flaw when he’s so central to everything.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

There’s time for a channel's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “avoids Christmas.”

But after he gets an sizable holiday payout at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) persuades him blowing the money on a family trip to Lapland.

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

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

A Classy Netflix Romance

This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the backdrop—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels comfortable and seasonal all the same.

Driven corporate star Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a champagne business. During her travels, she encounters a fellow in a book store who promises to show her the holidays in the City of Light.

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 festive dalliance with a dash of elegance and gives the necessary heartwarming sensation.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, refuses to stop believing in Father Christmas, despite the efforts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him the reality.

The secret is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the guidance of a group of well-known figures.

It’s low-key but sweet, and good viewing while waiting for Santa to visit.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

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 starts by mentioning holiday staples 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 the concept, but in practice it’s really a mash-up of those forerunner films, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last comes into her own.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s waned in quality, but thankfully here’s a new offering in the saturated market of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and strangely compelling—seasonal comfort food.

It’s a tale as old as time: An American woman journeys to a distant snowy land and ends up finding romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher