Binge-Watching 2025's Christmas Films: The Good, The Bad and The So-Bad-It's-Good.

‘Tis the season to lounge on the couch and demolish a packet of festive treats in front of a great film, a poor film, or one that’s awesomely awful.

As always, a crop of new seasonal stories strives to join part of our seasonal watchlist—perhaps even joining the ranks alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (no arguments).

Thus, in a vital public service to sort the crackers from the turkeys, and to find the festive feeling, I binged as many recent holiday releases as possible in a single day.

Early Morning: A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Starting, hopefully, on a good foot. This release is the exclusive 2025 movie on a well-known aggregator's list of the top 100 Christmas movies of all time.

The musical trio are stuck in the UK after finishing their international trek and must get home for Christmas. Their endeavors are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who sings to announce they won’t get home until they “find their sibling bond.”

The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is amusing even for the uninitiated, while fans will no doubt notice lots of easter eggs as they try to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s a journey of epic proportions.

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

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their relatives who must 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 “hard-to-work-with” and aging action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose manager has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre.

His Aladdin fellow actors inform him he’s playing Buttons. “No I'm not,” he insists angrily. One can imagine their reply. That is, unless you’re not acquainted with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some hilarious moments, some heartwarming storylines, and the supporting actors is cracking, too.

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

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

Mid-Morning: Christmas Karma

A familiar face pops up at the outset of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the second film in a row. Could this be a fresh holiday staple?

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 a star of Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The familiar story develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is haunted by the spirits of Christmas yesterday, today, and tomorrow, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This Indian Scrooge is at least distinct from all the others, but unfortunately he’s not very charismatic and Nayyar’s portrayal is flat—a significant issue when he’s so the main character.

Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄

Noon: A BBC Special

There’s time for a major broadcaster's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “doesn’t really do 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 holiday to Lapland.

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

Enjoyable but forgettable.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

1.12pm - Champagne Problems

This is one of those holiday movies where the festive trappings are in the backdrop—Christmas is the environment of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same.

High-powered businesswoman Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to negotiate a purchase for a champagne business. En route, she runs into a man in a literary haven who vows to show her the holidays in the City of Light.

An expert recently declared this is the top new Christmas film of the past few years. That’s a bit of a exaggeration, but it is a Christmas romance with a dash of elegance and gives the necessary cozy feelings.

The scene with a lengthy discussion 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, regardless of the efforts of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him otherwise.

The answer is to be discovered, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the assistance of a panel of well-known scientists and personalities.

It’s understated but charming, and good viewing while anticipating Santa to visit.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a dysfunctional American family who gather for the holidays—including fellow Oscar nominee Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary.

Pfeiffer opens by name-dropping Christmas classics like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before declaring: “They need to make a movie about the real champions of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s what this is, but in reality it’s really a combination of those forerunner films, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last comes into her own.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

6.43pm - A Scottish Christmas Secret

The day’s waned in quality, but happily here’s a new offering in the saturated market of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and highly entertaining—holiday fare.

It’s a narrative as familiar as can be: An American woman journeys to a picturesque cold country and ends up discovering romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher