The EU’s chief negotiator found his UK counterparts bizarrely unfocused during the long haul to fix a Brexit deal – and believes they still don’t know what they’ve doneRarely do we see thinking of the other side of a negotiation so quickly, while the t…
The Digital Death of Collecting
How platforms mess with our tastes. In the era of algorithmic feeds, it’s as if the bookshelves have started changing shape on their own in real time, shuffling some material to the front and downplaying the rest like a sleight-of-hand magician trying …
Dune review – David Lynch’s intergalactic epic shoots for the moon
There are moments of dreamlike brilliance in this extravagant fable of imperialism – provided you can stay awake to see themWith Denis Villeneuve’s new adaptation of Dune almost upon us, here is a chance to revisit David Lynch’s ill-starred attempt fro…
Foundation review – a galaxy of money can’t save Apple’s Star Dreck
With a huge budget, a starry cast including Jared Harris and explosive interplanetary plot, this new sci-fi epic wants to be taken seriously. What a shame it feels so earnest and ropeyTake one series of sci-fi books by the king of the genre Isaac Asimo…
A Hunter-Gatherer’s Guide to the 21st Century review – sciencey self-help
Evolutionary biologists Heather Heying and Bret Weinstein show how human nature is at odds with modern society, in a study soaked in pseudoscienceImagine discovering a fence in the middle of a desert. Not immediately seeing its purpose, you might think…
The Green Knight review – Dev Patel rides high on sublimely beautiful quest
Director David Lowery conjures up visual wonders and metaphysical mysteries from the anonymously authored 14th-century chivalric poemChrist’s sacrifice and the erotic death-wish of earthly glory: these are the components of this freaky folk horror from…
Netflix’s Roald Dahl universe would be a golden ticket to despair | Stuart Heritage
A glitzy franchise in which Matilda, the BFG and Willy Wonka all star threatens Dahl’s legacy and Netflix’s reputationAt this stage, it is abundantly clear that not everyone can pull off a shared universe. Marvel’s success has been followed up by a flu…
Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead review – a delicious heist novel
The double Pulitzer winner turns to crime with a tale of 1960s New York gangsters, rendered with superbly observed, affectionate, page-turning brioFor more than 20 years Colson Whitehead has delivered novels notable for cultural satire, racial allegory…
Forced from home: the humans and animals under threat – in pictures
Nick Brandt visited five animal sanctuaries in Africa to portray the people displaced by droughts and the creatures whose very existence is under threat Continue reading…
AI luminary Kai-Fu Lee and sci-fi author Chen Qiufan predict the future in ‘AI 2041’
What will an AI-infused world look like in 20 years? Sinovation founder and AI thought leader Kai-Fu Lee and breakout sci-fi author Chen Qiufan (AKA Stanley Chen) make an educated guess in “AI 2041.”