🔗 Share this article Devouring The Latest Festive Features: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good. ‘Tis the season to lounge on the sofa and devour a box of holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. Once again, a selection of new holiday movies aims to become part of our festive viewing—perhaps even joining the ranks alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments). Thus, in a helpful attempt to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to get into the festive feeling, I watched as many recent festive movies as possible in a single day. Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Starting, optimistically, on a good foot. This is the sole 2025 entry on a well-known aggregator's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time. The popular band find themselves trapped in the UK after finishing their world tour and must get home for Christmas. Their endeavors are hindered by an evil Santa, who breaks into song to announce they won’t get home until they “rediscover their sibling bond.” The banter between the squabbling siblings is entertaining even for the non-fan, while devotees will certainly notice lots of in-jokes as they try to get back using every mode of travel possible. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is superb 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. Late Morning: Tinsel Town A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a movie actor tricked into a pantomime. “A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and aging action hero Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose manager has misled him into thinking he’s starring in high-class London stage. His pantomime co-stars inform him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he insists angrily. It's easy to predict their retort. Except if you’re ignorant of traditional stage call-and-response. There are some very funny lines, some cockle-warming storylines, and the ensemble is brilliant, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit naff at another season, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 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. Could this be a fresh holiday staple? This time, he’s a musical taxi operator who collects Mr Sood, the newest interpretation on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Mr Sood is played by a star of Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the director of Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is confronted by the ghosts 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 regrettably he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s portrayal is flat—a significant issue when he’s so the main character. Festive score: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed There’s time for a major broadcaster's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “isn't big on Christmas.” But after he receives an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) persuades him spending the sum on a family trip to Lapland. There’s just one issue—he learns there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to determine how to reimburse the excess. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its core purpose—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a champagne business. During her travels, she encounters a fellow in a book store who offers to show her a festive Paris. A commentator recently declared this is the finest new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a Christmas romance with a touch of class and gives the necessary cozy feelings. The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is very good too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, despite the persuasion of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him the truth. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the guidance of a panel of well-known figures. It’s understated but endearing, and good viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a quarrelling American family who gather for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer opens by name-dropping holiday staples 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 concept, but in reality it’s really a combination of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last finds her strength. Festive score: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new offering in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and strangely compelling—festive fodder. It’s a narrative as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a far-off wintery locale and ends up finding romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
‘Tis the season to lounge on the sofa and devour a box of holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. Once again, a selection of new holiday movies aims to become part of our festive viewing—perhaps even joining the ranks alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments). Thus, in a helpful attempt to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to get into the festive feeling, I watched as many recent festive movies as possible in a single day. Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie Starting, optimistically, on a good foot. This is the sole 2025 entry on a well-known aggregator's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time. The popular band find themselves trapped in the UK after finishing their world tour and must get home for Christmas. Their endeavors are hindered by an evil Santa, who breaks into song to announce they won’t get home until they “rediscover their sibling bond.” The banter between the squabbling siblings is entertaining even for the non-fan, while devotees will certainly notice lots of in-jokes as they try to get back using every mode of travel possible. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is superb 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. Late Morning: Tinsel Town A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland has been cast as a movie actor tricked into a pantomime. “A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and aging action hero Brad Mack, who has hit a rough patch and whose manager has misled him into thinking he’s starring in high-class London stage. His pantomime co-stars inform him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he insists angrily. It's easy to predict their retort. Except if you’re ignorant of traditional stage call-and-response. There are some very funny lines, some cockle-warming storylines, and the ensemble is brilliant, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit naff at another season, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 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. Could this be a fresh holiday staple? This time, he’s a musical taxi operator who collects Mr Sood, the newest interpretation on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Mr Sood is played by a star of Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the director of Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story unfolds as the miserly Mr Sood is confronted by the ghosts 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 regrettably he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s portrayal is flat—a significant issue when he’s so the main character. Festive score: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed There’s time for a major broadcaster's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “isn't big on Christmas.” But after he receives an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) persuades him spending the sum on a family trip to Lapland. There’s just one issue—he learns there was an mix-up with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to determine how to reimburse the excess. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 1.12pm - Champagne Problems This is one of those holiday movies where the tree, fairy lights and snow are in the setting—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its core purpose—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Ambitious executive Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to secure an acquisition for a champagne business. During her travels, she encounters a fellow in a book store who offers to show her a festive Paris. A commentator recently declared this is the finest new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a Christmas romance with a touch of class and gives the necessary cozy feelings. The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is very good too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, despite the persuasion of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him the truth. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the guidance of a panel of well-known figures. It’s understated but endearing, and good viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun. Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a quarrelling American family who gather for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer opens by name-dropping holiday staples 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 concept, but in reality it’s really a combination of those inspirations, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last finds her strength. Festive score: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new offering in the saturated market of cliched, saccharine, over-the-top—and strangely compelling—festive fodder. It’s a narrative as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a far-off wintery locale and ends up finding romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher