‘Such a tonic’: why Burn After Reading is my feelgood movie
The latest in our series of writers remembering their most rewatched comfort film is a tribute to the Coens’ playful star-packed comedy
100 Meters review – mesmerising anime of young athletes in search of physical and spiritual high
Dazzling rotoscoped running sequences make up for a lack of narrative subtlety in Kenji Iwaisawa’s film
I’m a committed introvert – but no AI will take away the joy I get from other people
While it might be soothing to think you could replace social interactions like book clubs with ChatGPT, subcontracting human thought out to a bot will never bring happiness, writes Emma Beddington
Readers reply: Who is the most evil villain in fiction?
The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts
From the Celebrity Traitors finale to a Margaret Atwood memoir: the week in rave reviews
A truly satisfying climax to the celeb reality show, and the sharp and engaging thoughts of the Handmaid’s Tale author. Here’s the pick of the week’s culture, taken from the Guardian’s best-rated reviews
Lee Tamahori, director of Once Were Warriors and James Bond movie Die Another Day, dies aged 75
New Zealand film-maker became a Hollywood fixture in the 90s and 00s, including making Pierce Brosnan’s last 007 movie, before returning to his home country
Train Dreams review – Joel Edgerton superb in Malickian story of trees, grief and railroads
A logger clears a path for change in this sunset-hour-tastic adaptation by Clint Bentley – clearly a director of considerable power and feeling
Horror show: North American box office records lowest monthly total since 1997
Halloween weekend failed to make numbers jump, adding up to the weakest monthly performance – other than during the pandemic – for three decades
My Father’s Shadow looms over competition at British independent film awards
Akinola Davies Jr’s Nigeria-set drama has 12 nominations including best film and besr director
Winter in Sokcho review – atmospheric slow-burner about family and intimacy in South Korean border city
Koya Kamura’s debut film is about shared identities at the centre of quiet, chilly drama as an enigmatic French writer visits the eponymous town
What did Pasolini know? Fifty years after his brutal murder, the director’s vision of fascism is more urgent than ever
With mystery still surrounding Pier Paolo Pasolini’s death, the poet and film-maker’s warnings of corruption and rising totalitarianism offer a chilling message for our times
Down Cemetery Road to Florence + the Machine: the week in rave reviews
Emma Thompson lights up a new thriller from Slow Horses author Mick Herron, and the singer-songwriter is back with more bombastic chamber pop. Here’s the pick of the week’s culture, taken from the Guardian’s best-rated reviews
Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc review – gore-soaked demonic anime squats in the manosphere
Tatsuki Fujimoto’s coming-of-age saga continues with a surreal encounter with a chainsaw-wielding demon living in a teenager’s soul
AI can help authors beat writer’s block, says Bloomsbury chief
Publisher last week reported jump in revenue in academic and professional arm thanks to AI licensing deal
Nobody Wants This to Lily Allen: the week in rave reviews
Kristen Bell’s sex podcaster and Adam Brody’s hot rabbi return with more romcom angst, while the Smile singer’s new record is a sharp autopsy of marital betrayal. Here’s the pick of the week’s culture, taken from the Guardian’s best-rated reviews