🔗 Share this article Binge-Watching The Latest Festive Features: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights. ‘Tis the time of year to slob out on the sofa and demolish a packet of mince pies in front of a good movie, a bad movie, or one that’s awesomely awful. Once again, a selection of new holiday movies strives to join part of our holiday traditions—potentially even earning a place alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Therefore, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to get into the holiday mood, I binged as many recent festive movies as possible in a single day. Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Starting, ideally, on a high. This release is the sole 2025 title on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The popular band find themselves stuck in the UK after wrapping up their international trek and must return for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an evil Santa, who bursts into melody to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their familial spark.” The banter between the squabbling siblings is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while followers will undoubtedly catch lots of easter eggs as they try to get back using all transportation available. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is excellent for fans and a good start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their loved ones who are obliged to sit through it. Late Morning: Tinsel Town Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a movie actor tricked into a pantomime. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing action hero Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose manager has deceived him into thinking he’s starring in prestigious English theatre. His Aladdin cast-mates inform him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he insists angrily. You can guess their response. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response. There are some hilarious moments, some cockle-warming side stories, and the supporting actors is cracking, too. It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at another season, but is a great entertainment at Christmas. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge A familiar face pops up at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the next movie straight. Could this be a fresh holiday staple? This time, he’s a musical taxi operator 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 develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is visited by the ghosts of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This cultural adaptation is at least different from all the others, but sadly he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s portrayal is wooden—a major flaw when he’s so the focal point. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed Before lunch for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “avoids Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) convinces him spending the sum on a vacation to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he discovers there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to devise a plan for how to reimburse the difference. Pleasant yet unmemorable. Festive score: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance 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 vineyard to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she encounters a guy in a book store who vows to show her Christmas in Paris. An expert recently claimed this is the finest new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a stretch, 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. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, regardless of the attempts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The truth is to be discovered, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known experts and celebrities. It’s gentle but sweet, and ideal viewing while waiting for Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a dysfunctional American family who come back together for the holidays—including fellow acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing 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 true heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s the concept, but in execution it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength. Festive score: 🎄🎄 6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s gone downhill, but fortunately here’s a new addition in the saturated market of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and strangely compelling—festive fodder. It’s a tale as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a distant snowy land and ends up finding romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
‘Tis the time of year to slob out on the sofa and demolish a packet of mince pies in front of a good movie, a bad movie, or one that’s awesomely awful. Once again, a selection of new holiday movies strives to join part of our holiday traditions—potentially even earning a place alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Therefore, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to get into the holiday mood, I binged as many recent festive movies as possible in a single day. Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Starting, ideally, on a high. This release is the sole 2025 title on a well-known aggregator's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The popular band find themselves stuck in the UK after wrapping up their international trek and must return for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an evil Santa, who bursts into melody to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their familial spark.” The banter between the squabbling siblings is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while followers will undoubtedly catch lots of easter eggs as they try to get back using all transportation available. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is excellent for fans and a good start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their loved ones who are obliged to sit through it. Late Morning: Tinsel Town Famous performer Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a movie actor tricked into a pantomime. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “hard-to-work-with” and ageing action hero Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose manager has deceived him into thinking he’s starring in prestigious English theatre. His Aladdin cast-mates inform him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he insists angrily. You can guess their response. Except if you’re unfamiliar with traditional stage call-and-response. There are some hilarious moments, some cockle-warming side stories, and the supporting actors is cracking, too. It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at another season, but is a great entertainment at Christmas. Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge A familiar face pops up at the beginning of this film, too, calling someone a mug for the next movie straight. Could this be a fresh holiday staple? This time, he’s a musical taxi operator 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 develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is visited by the ghosts of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This cultural adaptation is at least different from all the others, but sadly he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s portrayal is wooden—a major flaw when he’s so the focal point. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed Before lunch for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “avoids Christmas.” But after he receives an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) convinces him spending the sum on a vacation to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he discovers there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to devise a plan for how to reimburse the difference. Pleasant yet unmemorable. Festive score: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance 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 vineyard to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she encounters a guy in a book store who vows to show her Christmas in Paris. An expert recently claimed this is the finest new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a stretch, 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. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, regardless of the attempts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The truth is to be discovered, and Chris embarks on a quest to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known experts and celebrities. It’s gentle but sweet, and ideal viewing while waiting for Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a dysfunctional American family who come back together for the holidays—including fellow acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer begins by referencing 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 true heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s the concept, but in execution it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength. Festive score: 🎄🎄 6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s gone downhill, but fortunately here’s a new addition in the saturated market of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and strangely compelling—festive fodder. It’s a tale as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a distant snowy land and ends up finding romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher