2025 is already chock full of new releases, but where should a VMAN begin his quest for finding the best new tracks to revamp his playlist or where to book a reservation for date night?

We break down six must-know releases to keep you busy this season.

WHAT TO SEE/WATCH:
TOM BLYTH and RUSSELL TOVEY’S FORBIDDEN LOVE IN PLAINCLOTHES

A romantic thriller or a thrilling romance. Call it what you want, but Carmen Emmi’s directorial debut, Plainclothes, is not your boilerplate love affair. Set in 1997, the film is a frantically taut tale about identity, detailing the story of a promising undercover cop assigned to lure and arrest gay men before defying orders when he falls in love with a target. Shot in his hometown, Emmi’s directorial foray is marked by the inescapably personal experience of being a formerly closeted gay man. “I made this film so that my seven-year-old self could exhale,” Emmi says in his filmmaker’s note. “I made it for the countless people…who hold their true selves back.” Fundamentally, Plainclothes comes as a lived restoration, but also as an unflinching take on a man grappling with his sexuality at a time when being gay garnered a death sentence. It is an illustration of the ineludible complexities inherent to the emotional existence that is being human. Starring Tom Blyth as the offending officer and featuring Russell Tovey, Maria Dizzia, and Amy Forsyth, Plainclothes has made its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival and will be available to watch later this year.

WHAT TO EXPLORE:
ENTER THE SUITE LIFE WITH NORMAN REEDUS’S PHOTO EXHIBITION AT SOHO GRAND

Every New Yorker knows that within the nit and grit of downtown Manhattan lies a glut of glittering gems, you just have to look for them. Multi-hyphenate artist Norman Reedus did, and the Gallery at Soho Grand, downtown’s ritziest boutique hotel, will host an exclusive photography exhibition showcasing the doomiest and gloomiest of his finds. Titled “IN TRANSIT,” Reedus’s latest viewing operates as a sort of yearbook in the life—the life of the unconventional and the urban, each governed by a ruthlessly ephemeral beauty in continuous metamorphosis. Using the same creative energy he brings to acting [you may recognize him as The Walking Dead’s Daryl Dixon], Reedus explores the intricacies of human emotion through visual art, finding grace in the unexpected and mystery in the quotidian. His distinctively dark aesthetic transforms candid moments into portraits of character and grit, demonstrating how even the overlooked and abandoned possess an inescapably raw energy. Following solo exhibitions in Tokyo, Barcelona, Paris, and Los Angeles, Reedus’s latest show is a must-see. And, if you love New York City, in all her decadence and debauchery, you will.

“IN TRANSIT” will be showing at the Gallery at Soho Grand from January 29 to May 18.

WHERE TO EAT:
LE CAFÉ LOUIS VUITTON CALLS ALL FASHION FOODIES WITH FIRST U.S. RESTAURANT

Forget your mother’s cooking, and let Louis Vuitton wine and dine you. The fourth floor of their new East 57th Street store is now home to Le Café Louis Vuitton, and, from what we’ve heard, caviar and Comté abound. The latest culinary endeavor of the French maison is grounded in familiar influences and French flavors with a distinctly New York twist. The menu, crafted by French chefs Arnaud Donckele and Maxime Frédéric, is rooted in lavish little bites, and the celebrated duo, who also opened a restaurant at Louis Vuitton in Saint- Tropez, has placed local talents Christophe Bellanca and Marie George at the helm of the café. Luxury snacking comes in the form of steamed scallop soufflé, decadently topped with caviar and champagne beurre blanc, and a dessert selection of reinterpreted French classics—hazelnut gâteaux and LV Monogram embossed pear tarts. We must remind you, however, that it’s not just about the food. Flanked with wall-to-wall books, a collection of 600 titles curated by editor Ian Luna, the café-library hybrid space encourages meaningful conversation. In the midst of dinner, designer and decadence, what better place to ponder Sontag’s On Photography or Warhol’s deluded aesthetic?

WHAT TO SMELL:
FRAGRANCE PHENOM FRANCIS KURKDJIAN’S LATEST SCENT REMIX, DIOR HOMME PARFUM

Francis Kurkdjian’s reinvention of an olfactory classic is a return to Dior’s structured aesthetic. Built around an overdose of the Iris Pallida [quite literally doubled in composition], the latest Dior Homme Parfum effectively harnesses the bold sensuality of a floral body with the fiery spirit of amber and woody accords. Fit for the devilishly handsome VMAN, the fragrance is accented by an addictive blend of the Iris’s dual facets: tender as the flower and powerful as the roots. It’s alluring, it’s magnetic, and it’s oh, so beguiling. Kurkdjian’s pills and potions have forged a perfumed paradox—a concealed femininity married to a tactile masculine allure. Powerful vetiver and coumarin with hints of freshly cut hay lend the scent a strength integral to its inherent sensuality, and the overdose of soft petals and roots ally masculine rigor with notes of gourmand amber warmth. A play on power and tenderness, the power in tenderness, the latest Dior Homme Parfum rendition is a clever lesson in seduction, so pay attention.

WHAT TO LISTEN TO:
BELGIAN-EGYPTIAN MUSICIAN TAMINO BEARS HIS SOUL IN EVERY DAWN’S A MOUNTAIN

The indie rock singer, Tamino’s, upcoming album, Every Dawn’s a Mountain, is a hypnotic 10-track testimonial to the new beginnings buried in every end. Harnessing a melodic discourse fueled by an ever-growing fire of change, each song builds on the value of impermanence infiltrating each and every one of us. Having headlined arenas in Europe and the Middle East, Tamino has retained a strong link to his Arab lineage, and the album’s musical arrangements are intensified by the strings of the Arabic oud. His newest single, “Babylon,” is a six-minute epic and cornerstone of the album, and the fifth track, “Sanctuary,” featuring Mitski, is a testament to the embers of emotional wreckage that spur the dawn of a new birth. Tamino’s voice smolders and erupts, deep and sultry tones evolving into flickering falsettos. Loss and displacement are counteracted by creation and impassioned genesis. Through Every Dawn’s a Mountain, Tamino constructs a metaphysical altar to human brevity. He reminds us, “The faster the flame burns, the harder it is to catch.”

Every Dawn’s a Mountain will be released on March 21st.

WHAT TO READ:
THE ASSOULINE BOOK RELEASES YOUR COFFEE TABLE NEEDS

A coffee table of banality is unholy. We beg of you, please don’t sin. Here are two of Assouline’s must-haves for the spring. For the stylistically proficient, James Bond Style is a fledgling charmer’s must-have. An exploration of the fashion behind all 25 Bond movies (in chronological order of principal Bond, from Sean Connery to Daniel Craig), each chapter captures the most iconic looks from the franchise. From 007’s sharpest suits—33 bespoke Tom Ford suits were made for No Time to Die in record time—to each bombshell’s glamorous gown—in Quantum of Solace, Prada fabricated 20 dresses for Olga Kurylenko from brand-new to ruined—an amalgamation of never before seen sketches, analyses and behind-the-scenes insights produce a comprehensive chronicle of the films’ sartorial codes. Onto the cosmopolitan canine—man’s best friend. And Winston Churchill’s. And Maria Callas’s. And Coco Chanel’s. We won’t go on, but Chic Dogs will. And it does, in the sharpest way possible. Recognizing dogs as an inextricable part of our cultural fabric going back centuries, the visually compelling anthology features some of the most singularly famous relationships between iconic figures and their four-legged friends. The distinguished dog, that emblem of sophistication and style—Louis Vuitton dedicated an entire collection to one—is now placed at the forefront of an aesthetic dialogue, and who doesn’t love a little canine cultism?

This story appears in the pages of VMAN 54: now available for purchase!