Best Films, Books, and Music of the Winter 2024-2025 Season

The upcoming winter season, despite dramatic global events, offers not only traditional winter pastimes but also a wide array of cultural events worth experiencing. Captivating films, excellent books, and dynamic concerts will help brighten the cold winter months as we await the arrival of spring and good news.

The Gaze has selected a list of films, books, and music concerts that truly deserve your attention.

Films

Our shortlist includes a Ukrainian New Year comedy, a thrilling horror film starring Bill Skarsgård (It) as a new monster, and a philosophical melodrama about life on Earth.

"The Train on 31 December"

It might seem, and to some extent, it is true, that since the onset of the full-scale war in Ukraine, films have predominantly revolved around war-related themes. However, Ukrainians wouldn’t be Ukrainians if they didn’t find time for humour and warm smiles, even in the toughest of times. Especially when it comes to New Year and Christmas stories. If Ukrainian filmmakers decide to create a film about New Year’s magic, no raging Putin with his "orcs" and "Iskanders" will stop them.

The film follows the story of passengers heading to Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, on 31 December aboard an old train embarking on what may be its final journey, just like its conductor, who is set to retire. Eager for the trip to go as smoothly as possible, the conductor soon finds his hopes dashed. The passengers of Ukrzaliznytsia—strangers at first—are brought together by the train itself, turning this seemingly ordinary ride into an unforgettable journey.

"Nosferatu"

Tickling your nerves and boosting your adrenaline during the New Year holidays might not be such a bad idea. For this, the upcoming release of Nosferatu, a new film by Robert Eggers, renowned for his historical and folk horrors (The Witch, The Lighthouse), is worth noting. This film, the second remake of the 1922 German Expressionist classic inspired by Bram Stoker's Dracula, promises to be both terrifying and visually stunning. The gothic setting of the 19th century was filmed at the Czech Barrandov Studios amidst authentic medieval European architecture. According to the distributor’s official synopsis, Nosferatu is “a gothic tale of a girl obsessed with a terrifying vampire who falls in love with her, spreading unspeakable horror.” Spooky and mysterious, isn’t it?

"Here"

This film by Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future, Forrest Gump) has received mixed reviews from critics, but in our opinion, it’s worth watching. Firstly, it is an adaptation of Richard McGuire’s highly unusual and cult-classic 300-page graphic novel Here. The uniqueness of the idea lies in its scope, covering a time span from 3,000,500,000 BCE to 22,175 CE, all unfolding in a single spot in New England. Throughout this sweeping story of life on Earth, neither the location nor the perspective changes. Zemeckis has shot the film using a similar concept—a fixed, static camera capturing the lives of people and other living creatures inhabiting our world. Furthermore, Then. Now. Later. is the first feature film shot using deepfake technology, which rejuvenates and ages actors’ appearances in real time. This cutting-edge technology allows us to see Tom Hanks and Robin Wright young and in love once more, just like in the era of Forrest Gump.

Books

Among the literary selections, we present the personal account of a renowned author who faced radical religious fanatics and a unique perspective on the world of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.

"Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder" by Salman Rushdie

This autobiographical book by British-Indian author Salman Rushdie (whose head had a $2.8 million bounty placed by Iranian Ayatollah Khomeini) focuses on the attack against him during a 2022 speech in New York. Against the backdrop of ongoing dramatic events in the Middle East and the rise of anti-Israeli protests in Europe and the US, often led by left-leaning students supporting Palestinian militants, this book serves as a wake-up call for overzealous sympathisers of radical Islamists. Rushdie recounts his journey to physical recovery and healing, made possible through the love and support of his wife, family, medical team, and readers worldwide. A documentary based on the book is planned, featuring footage shot by Rushdie’s wife, interviews, excerpts from his works, and Khomeini’s 1989 fatwa calling for his death over The Satanic Verses.

"James" by Percival Everett

This novel acts as a spinoff to Mark Twain’s classic Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, offering a shift in perspective by narrating from the viewpoint of Jim, Huck's companion and a runaway slave. While its opening scenes echo Twain’s light-hearted, adolescent adventure prose, the story ventures into the uncomfortable realities of adult drama. The challenges faced by a Black fugitive on the antebellum American South’s slave-owning terrain are explored in depth, with themes of rape, murder, assault, and racism taking centre stage. The novel has received critical acclaim, winning the 2024 Kirkus Prize and the National Book Award, while also being shortlisted for this year’s Booker Prize.

Music

As the world remains open and before any new pandemic or global conflict erupts (serious discussions of World War III are already underway), we encourage you to seize the moment and attend a concert by one of the world’s top musicians.

Billie Eilish's Tour

In her latest tour, Billie Eilish will showcase her new album Hit Me Hard and Soft alongside her past hits, including Oscar-winning songs No Time to Die and What Was I Made For from No Time to Die (2021) and Barbie (2023). Billie shot to stardom in 2015 with her debut single Ocean Eyes on SoundCloud. Her debut album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? topped both the US Billboard 200 and the UK Albums Chart in 2019, while the single Bad Guy reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Her upcoming tour starts on 18 February in Brisbane, Australia, and concludes on 27 July in Dublin, Ireland.

Coldplay's Tour

Coldplay are among the most influential bands of the 21st century and a significant force in alternative rock. Having sold over 100 million albums globally, their tours rank among the highest-grossing worldwide. The Music of the Spheres World Tour, their eighth concert series, celebrates their ninth and tenth studio albums, Music of the Spheres (2021) and Moon Music (2024). The tour, which began in March 2022 in Costa Rica, was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic but will resume on 9 January in Abu Dhabi and conclude on 8 September in London.

Green Day's Tour

American punk rockers Green Day have sold over 75 million albums worldwide. They’ve been nominated for 20 Grammy Awards, winning five, with their albums consistently topping global sales charts. The Saviors Tour supports their 14th studio album, Saviors, and began in mid-2024 in Spain. It will end on 7 July at the Ejekt Festival in Athens, with their first 2025 concert scheduled for 19 January in Soweto, South Africa. The tour also celebrates milestone albums: Dookie’s 30th anniversary (1994) and American Idiot’s 20th (2004).