🔗 Share this article Devouring The Latest 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 holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a bad movie, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. Once again, a selection of latest seasonal stories 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). Therefore, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to embrace the holiday mood, I binged as many recent Christmas films as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Kicking off, optimistically, on a good foot. This film is the sole 2025 movie on a popular review site's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The popular band are stuck in the UK after concluding their global concert series and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are thwarted by an villainous Saint Nick, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their familial spark.” The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while devotees will undoubtedly notice lots of references as they try to get back using every mode of travel possible. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not an all-time classic, but is great for devotees and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their loved ones who will have to sit through it. Late Morning: Tinsel Town A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland appears as a celebrity roped into a pantomime. “A panto-what??” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and older action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose manager has misled him into thinking he’s starring in prestigious English theatre. His Aladdin cast-mates let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he insists angrily. You can guess their reply. That is, unless you’re unfamiliar with traditional British theatre traditions. There are some great jokes, some heartwarming side stories, and the ensemble is excellent, too. It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at any other time of year, but is a great entertainment at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge An actor pops up at the outset of this film, too, insulting someone for the next movie straight. Could this be a budding festive ritual? 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 The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative 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 cultural adaptation is at least different from all the others, but sadly he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s portrayal is flat—a problem when he’s so the main character. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 12.04pm - Stuffed There's just enough time for a network's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he gets an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) persuades him spending the sum on a holiday to Lapland. There’s just one snag—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 pay back the excess. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Early Afternoon: Champagne Problems This is one of those holiday movies where the decorations and snow are in the backdrop—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 (played by Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a country estate to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she runs into a guy in a book store who vows to show her a festive Paris. A commentator recently stated this is the finest new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the necessary cozy feelings. The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is very good too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, despite the attempts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The truth is somewhere, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the assistance of a group of well-known experts and celebrities. It’s gentle but endearing, and ideal viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a bickering American family who reunite for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress 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 true heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s the concept, but in reality it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last comes into her own. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new addition in the saturated market of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and highly entertaining—holiday fare. It’s a story as old as time: An American woman goes on a quest to a picturesque cold country and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
‘Tis the season to lounge on the couch and demolish a packet of holiday pastries in front of a terrific flick, a bad movie, or one that’s terrible yet terrific. Once again, a selection of latest seasonal stories 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). Therefore, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to embrace the holiday mood, I binged as many recent Christmas films as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Kicking off, optimistically, on a good foot. This film is the sole 2025 movie on a popular review site's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The popular band are stuck in the UK after concluding their global concert series and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are thwarted by an villainous Saint Nick, who breaks into song to declare they won’t get home until they “rediscover their familial spark.” The back-and-forth between the arguing trio is entertaining even for the uninitiated, while devotees will undoubtedly notice lots of references as they try to get back using every mode of travel possible. It’s a travelogue of mishaps. It’s not an all-time classic, but is great for devotees and a solid start to the day. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their loved ones who will have to sit through it. Late Morning: Tinsel Town A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland appears as a celebrity roped into a pantomime. “A panto-what??” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and older action hero Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose manager has misled him into thinking he’s starring in prestigious English theatre. His Aladdin cast-mates let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he insists angrily. You can guess their reply. That is, unless you’re unfamiliar with traditional British theatre traditions. There are some great jokes, some heartwarming side stories, and the ensemble is excellent, too. It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit tacky at any other time of year, but is a great entertainment at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge An actor pops up at the outset of this film, too, insulting someone for the next movie straight. Could this be a budding festive ritual? 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 The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the filmmaker behind Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative 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 cultural adaptation is at least different from all the others, but sadly he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s portrayal is flat—a problem when he’s so the main character. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 12.04pm - Stuffed There's just enough time for a network's Christmas comedy-drama—which stars Guz Khan as a lovably grouchy guy who “doesn’t really do Christmas.” But after he gets an large festive windfall at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) persuades him spending the sum on a holiday to Lapland. There’s just one snag—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 pay back the excess. Fun while it lasts but not lasting. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Early Afternoon: Champagne Problems This is one of those holiday movies where the decorations and snow are in the backdrop—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 (played by Minka Kelly) is dispatched to a country estate to do a deal for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she runs into a guy in a book store who vows to show her a festive Paris. A commentator recently stated this is the finest new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a stretch, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the necessary cozy feelings. The scene with a lengthy discussion about Die Hard is very good too. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 3.29pm - Finding Father Christmas Sixteen-year-old Chris, played by Lenny Rush, holds onto his belief in Father Christmas, despite the attempts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The truth is somewhere, and Chris ventures forth to find it with the assistance of a group of well-known experts and celebrities. It’s gentle but endearing, and ideal viewing while expecting Santa to visit. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the head of a bickering American family who reunite for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress 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 true heroes of the holidays—moms.” So that’s the concept, but in reality it’s really a combination of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character at last comes into her own. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄 Formulaic Fun The day’s waned in quality, but fortunately here’s a new addition in the saturated market of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and highly entertaining—holiday fare. It’s a story as old as time: An American woman goes on a quest to a picturesque cold country and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher