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The critics
Books
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What to read to understand Freud
Three books that take their cue from the father of psychoanalysis
Rebecca Perry’s debut novel serves a feast for an unfit king
This lyrical work of historical fiction transports us to a gossip-filled medieval court via the curious mind of a present-day curator
What to read this week, from the Maga right to an Orthodox love story
Your essential guide from The Observer’s books desk
Film
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The best and worst from the Berlin film festival
This year’s film festival showcased pictures that were brilliant, bad and bleak
Wendy Ide’s pick of other films: The President’s Cake, Crime 101, Looney Tunes and more
An Iraqi schoolgirl is tasked with making a classroom cake for Saddam Hussein’s birthday in Hasan Hadi’s sharply observed, bittersweet odyssey
What The Brutalist film-makers did next
Director couple Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold are on a mission to counter box office franchise churn with eccentric, low-budget projects. Cue The Testament of Ann Lee
Theatre and dance
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The latest Dracula has no teeth
Wicked star Cynthia Erivo holds her own as the cameras circle in a dazzling but bloodless one-woman take on Bram Stoker’s novel
Writing for the stage? I’m mad for it
My first play, about the battle between Blur and Oasis in 1995, opened last night – and it’s transformed my view of the theatre
The immortal work of Pina Bausch
Sweet Mambo, created a year before the choreographer’s death, is given a haunting, emotional revival by its original cast. Plus, Glen Tetley’s joy-filled world
