🔗 Share this article Devouring 2025's Festive Features: Highlights, Lowlights, and Unexpected Delights. It is the time of year to relax on the sofa and demolish a packet of mince pies in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s so bad it’s good. This year, a selection of new Christmas films strives to join part of our festive viewing—potentially even joining the ranks alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Thus, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to embrace the holiday mood, I watched as many new holiday releases as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Beginning, ideally, on a good foot. This release is the only 2025 title on a popular review site's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The musical trio are stranded in the UK after concluding their international trek and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who sings to announce they won’t get home until they “rekindle their brotherly magic.” The repartee between the bickering brothers is enjoyable even for the uninitiated, while followers will no doubt pick up on lots of in-jokes as they try to get back using all transportation available. It’s a journey of epic proportions. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is great for fans and a good start to the day. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 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 stars as a Hollywood star tricked into a traditional British stage show. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and aging lead Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose agent has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime fellow actors let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their reply. Unless you’re ignorant of traditional panto catchphrases. There are some great jokes, some heartwarming side stories, and the rest of the cast is cracking, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit tacky at any other time of year, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge Danny Dyer appears at the outset of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the next movie straight. Is this a budding festive ritual? 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 an actor from Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the director of Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative progresses as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is confronted by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This cultural adaptation is at least unique from all the others, but sadly he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s performance is flat—a problem when he’s so the main character. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed Before lunch for a major broadcaster's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “avoids Christmas.” But after he gets an large festive windfall at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) talks him into splurging the cash on a family trip to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he learns there was an mistake with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to pay back the remainder. Enjoyable but forgettable. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance This is one of those holiday movies where the decorations and snow are in the background—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Driven corporate star Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to do a deal for a champagne business. During her travels, she meets a fellow in a literary haven who offers to show her Christmas in Paris. A critic recently declared this is the best new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the required heartwarming sensation. The scene with a extended debate about Die Hard is very good too. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Teenage Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, in spite of the persuasion of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known figures. It’s understated but charming, and good viewing while waiting for Santa to visit. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a quarrelling American family who reunite for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer starts by mentioning 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 mash-up of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually comes into her own. Festive score: 🎄🎄 Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s waned in quality, but happily here’s a new addition in the packed genre of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and utterly watchable—seasonal comfort food. It’s a story as well-worn: An American woman goes on a quest to a distant snowy land and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher
It is the time of year to relax on the sofa and demolish a packet of mince pies in front of a terrific flick, a awful feature, or one that’s so bad it’s good. This year, a selection of new Christmas films strives to join part of our festive viewing—potentially even joining the ranks alongside beloved favorites like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (don’t start). Thus, in a noble effort to separate the winners from the losers, and to embrace the holiday mood, I watched as many new holiday releases as possible in a single day. First Up: The Jonas Brothers' Holiday Flick Beginning, ideally, on a good foot. This release is the only 2025 title on a popular review site's list of the greatest 100 holiday films of all time. The musical trio are stranded in the UK after concluding their international trek and must make it back for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an malevolent Father Christmas, who sings to announce they won’t get home until they “rekindle their brotherly magic.” The repartee between the bickering brothers is enjoyable even for the uninitiated, while followers will no doubt pick up on lots of in-jokes as they try to get back using all transportation available. It’s a journey of epic proportions. It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is great for fans and a good start to the day. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 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 stars as a Hollywood star tricked into a traditional British stage show. “A what's a panto??” asks Sutherland’s “temperamental” and aging lead Brad Mack, who has fallen on hard times and whose agent has deceived him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre. His pantomime fellow actors let him know he’s playing Buttons. “Oh no I’m not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their reply. Unless you’re ignorant of traditional panto catchphrases. There are some great jokes, some heartwarming side stories, and the rest of the cast is cracking, too. It’s the type of film that would be a bit tacky at any other time of year, but is a lot of fun at Christmas. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 A New Spin on Scrooge Danny Dyer appears at the outset of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the next movie straight. Is this a budding festive ritual? 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 an actor from Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by the director of Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative progresses as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is confronted by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George. This cultural adaptation is at least unique from all the others, but sadly he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s performance is flat—a problem when he’s so the main character. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 Lunchtime: Stuffed Before lunch for a major broadcaster's holiday special—which stars Guz Khan as a charmingly cantankerous character who “avoids Christmas.” But after he gets an large festive windfall at work, his wife (portrayed by Morgana Robinson) talks him into splurging the cash on a family trip to Lapland. There’s just one problem—he learns there was an mistake with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to pay back the remainder. Enjoyable but forgettable. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄 A Classy Netflix Romance This is one of those holiday movies where the decorations and snow are in the background—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same. Driven corporate star Sydney (played by Minka Kelly) is sent to a country estate to do a deal for a champagne business. During her travels, she meets a fellow in a literary haven who offers to show her Christmas in Paris. A critic recently declared this is the best new Christmas film of the last several seasons. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a festive dalliance with a hint of sophistication and gives the required heartwarming sensation. The scene with a extended debate about Die Hard is very good too. Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄 A Charming Quest Teenage Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, in spite of the persuasion of his dad (played by James Buckley) to tell him otherwise. The answer is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the expert help of a team of well-known figures. It’s understated but charming, and good viewing while waiting for Santa to visit. Holiday verdict: 🎄🎄🎄 A Star-Studded Family Drama Michelle Pfeiffer is the mother of a quarrelling American family who reunite for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary. Pfeiffer starts by mentioning 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 mash-up of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually comes into her own. Festive score: 🎄🎄 Evening: A Scottish Christmas Secret The day’s waned in quality, but happily here’s a new addition in the packed genre of predictable, sentimental, cheesy—and utterly watchable—seasonal comfort food. It’s a story as well-worn: An American woman goes on a quest to a distant snowy land and ends up stumbling across romance. In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher