Marathon Viewing This Year's Holiday Movies: The Hits, The Misses, and The Guilty Pleasures.

It is the season to slob out on the couch and devour a tin of festive treats in front of a good movie, a awful feature, or one that’s so bad it’s good.

As always, a crop of latest seasonal stories strives to join part of our holiday traditions—potentially even joining the ranks alongside enduring classics like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start).

So, in a helpful attempt to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to embrace the festive feeling, I marathoned as many fresh Christmas films as possible in a single day.

7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Beginning, ideally, on a good foot. This is the exclusive 2025 title on a popular review site's list of the greatest 100 festive features of all time.

The musical trio find themselves stuck in the UK after finishing their global concert series and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are thwarted by an villainous Saint Nick, who bursts into melody to announce they won’t get home until they “find their brotherly magic.”

The banter between the arguing trio is enjoyable even for the non-fan, while fans will no doubt pick up on lots of easter eggs as they endeavor to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s private planes, trains and automobiles.

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

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

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a Hollywood star tricked into a pantomime.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and ageing action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose agent has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in renowned British drama.

His Aladdin co-stars inform him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he insists angrily. You can guess their reply. Unless you’re not acquainted with traditional British theatre traditions.

There are some great jokes, some cockle-warming side stories, and the rest of the cast is cracking, too.

It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit naff at a different time, but is a highly enjoyable at Christmas.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

A familiar face appears at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the second consecutive movie. Could this be a budding festive ritual?

This time, he’s a musical taxi operator who collects Mr Sood, the modern take 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 familiar story develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is haunted by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This cultural adaptation is at least different from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very compelling and Nayyar’s acting is lifeless—a major flaw when he’s so central to everything.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

There's just enough time for a channel's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “doesn’t really do Christmas.”

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

There’s just one problem—he learns there was an error with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to devise a plan for how to reimburse the excess.

Pleasant yet unmemorable.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

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 core purpose—but it feels comfortable and seasonal all the same.

Driven corporate star Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is sent to a French chateau to negotiate a purchase for a sparkling wine company. On the way, she runs into a guy in a bookshop who promises to show her Christmas in Paris.

An expert recently claimed this is the top new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a Christmas romance with a dash of elegance and gives the necessary warm and fuzzy feels.

The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is particularly strong too.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, despite 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 guidance of a group of well-known figures.

It’s understated but sweet, and perfect viewing while expecting Santa to visit.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄

Late Afternoon: 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 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 true heroes of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the premise, but in practice it’s really a jumble of those forerunner films, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually takes center stage.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new offering in the packed genre of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and strangely compelling—holiday fare.

It’s a tale as well-worn: An American woman goes on a quest to a distant snowy land and ends up discovering romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher