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The documentary Kinaesthesia delves into the dreamlike qualities of early cinema, showcasing a treasure trove of visions from the 1910s and 1920s. Director Gerald Fox draws on the theories of late Harvard film studies professor Vlada Petrić, who posited that early cinema pioneers employed techniques to activate the brain similar to those experienced during dreams.Luis Buñuel's Un Chien Andalou, co-written with Salvador Dalí and inspired by their dreams, is a seminal work featured in the documentary. Its surreal images, including a razor slicing through an eyeball and rotting donkeys strapped to grand pianos, continue to shock and disturb nearly a century later.The film is a greatest hits collection of experimental early cinema, featuring works by FW Murnau, Fritz Lang, Sergei Eisenstein, and Oleksandr Dovzhenko. Notably, it includes Teinosuke Kinugasa's A Page of Madness, a 1926 film set in a psychiatric hospital that was long believed lost but later found in a sake barrel.The documentary also highlights the contributions of avant-garde filmmaker Maya Deren, with a dedicated section showcasing her brilliance. While the narration by Fox can be somewhat hammy and the dramatic sections featuring Goran Kostic as Professor Petrić add little value, the film remains required viewing for anyone interested in the history of cinema.Kinaesthesia is set to release in UK and Irish cinemas from April 17, 2026.

A French court has convicted cement giant Lafarge of financing terrorism through its Syrian subsidiary, fining the company €1.12 million ($1.32m) and confiscating €30 million ($35.1m) worth of its assets. The court also sentenced former CEO Bruno Lafont to six years in jail.The Paris court ruled that Lafarge had paid protection money directly to ISIL (ISIS) and other armed groups, breaching European sanctions to operate in northern Syria during the country's civil war in 2013-2014. The company paid a total of €5.59 million ($6.55m) to armed groups in Syria, including to ISIL and the al-Nusra Front.The court found that Lafarge's payments helped to strengthen groups that carried out deadly attacks in Syria and beyond. The company's former deputy managing director, Christian Herrault, was sentenced to five years in jail, while other former employees received fines and sentences ranging from one to seven years.The case marks the first time a company has been tried in France for financing terrorism. Lafarge, now part of Swiss building materials conglomerate Holcim, acknowledged paying nearly €13 million ($15.2m) to middlemen to keep its Syrian cement factory running during the war. The company claimed it bore no responsibility for the money winding up in the hands of armed groups.In a separate case in the United States, Lafarge admitted to paying $6m to ISIL and the al-Nusra Front to allow employees, customers, and suppliers to pass through checkpoints. The company paid $778m in forfeiture and fines as part of a plea agreement.

Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), the parent company of the Truth Social platform, has formally withdrawn its defamation claim against The Guardian and two additional defendants. The suit had challenged a March 2023 Guardian report alleging that federal prosecutors were investigating $8 million in payments received by TMTG from entities with connections to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The dismissal was filed in the 12th Judicial Circuit Court in Sarasota County, Florida, on Friday. By withdrawing without prejudice, TMTG retains the option to re‑file the case at a future date. The Guardian’s original article said New York prosecutors opened a criminal inquiry into money wired to TMTG via the Caribbean by two parties that appeared to be partially controlled by an associate of a Putin ally. At the time, TMTG was preparing for a merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC) that would have created a company valued at roughly $1.3 billion. Feeling vulnerable to accusations of receiving funds from a potentially hostile source, TMTG sued for libel, asserting that the Guardian’s statements were false and defamatory. In November, Judge Hunter W. Carroll dismissed the case against Guardian News and Media Ltd., Penske Media Corporation (owner of Variety), and former TMTG founder‑turned‑whistleblower Will Wilkerson, citing a failure to prove actual malice. Carroll, appointed by former Florida Governor Rick Scott, allowed TMTG to file an amended complaint, which the company did in January. A hearing was scheduled for the following Tuesday, but TMTG’s sudden withdrawal halted the proceedings. No reason was provided for the abrupt change. The Guardian has been contacted for comment. In April 2024, a lawyer for Trump sent The Guardian a letter calling its reporting “false” and a “hoax,” insisting that litigation would continue until the outlet retracted the story. Despite the legal tussle, there is no evidence that TMTG or its executives knowingly concealed the origin of the loans. No criminal charges have been brought against the company. Guardian News and Media responded, welcoming the voluntary dismissal and emphasizing that its reporting was based on meticulous fact‑checking, credible sources, and thorough documentation, while characterizing TMTG’s claims as meritless. The dismissal marks a rare retreat for Trump’s legal team, which has pursued an increasingly aggressive strategy against media outlets during his second presidential term, securing several high‑profile settlements with broadcasters such as ABC and CBS. Trump is currently pursuing a $15 billion defamation suit against The New York Times and a $10 billion claim against the BBC, alleging editorial manipulation of his speeches. Both cases have been described by the defendants as groundless and potentially chilling to press freedom. The Guardian’s investigation focused on two emergency loans TMTG received in December 2021 and February 2022, when the company faced a financial crisis after its merger with DWAC was delayed by SEC and FINRA investigations. Wire‑transfer records traced a $2 million payment through Paxum Bank, a Dominica‑registered institution, and a subsequent $6 million payment involving the ES Family Trust, whose trustee also served as a Paxum director. Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York examined Paxum Bank’s ownership, identifying a link to Anton Postolnikov, a relative of Aleksandr Smirnov, an associate of Putin.

According to the latest Tottenham Hotspur financial statements, former executive chair Daniel Levy received £5.76 million in remuneration for the year ending 30 June 2025. That figure represents a 54% increase on his 2024 earnings and, as noted by football‑finance analyst Kieran Maguire, made him the highest‑paid director in the Premier League for the season. In stark contrast, the club’s women’s team—comprising 64 players and staff—had a combined salary and bonus total of £3.73 million, a 23% rise from the previous year. After accounting for social security and pension contributions, the overall wage bill reached £4.3 million, with an average annual earnings of roughly £58,000 per employee. This places Tottenham Women below several WSL rivals that have disclosed their 2024‑25 accounts, such as Brighton (£5 million), Manchester United (£5.88 million), and Arsenal (£11.3 million), but above Liverpool (£3.12 million). The women’s side recorded a post‑tax loss of £2.83 million, marginally higher than the £2.73 million loss reported in 2024. The deficit persisted despite a notable surge in commercial revenue, which more than doubled from £1.46 million to £3.34 million. Broadcast income remained static at £267,414, while prize‑money earnings fell by approximately £600,000. On the pitch, Tottenham Women finished the 2024‑25 campaign in 11th place in the Women’s Super League. However, the current 2025‑26 season shows a marked turnaround, with the team sitting fifth with three matches remaining and having nearly doubled their league victories compared with the previous term. Sources indicate that an internal review has repositioned women’s football as a strategic priority for the club, a shift that is expected to be reflected in the forthcoming 2025‑26 accounts.

At 19,000 miles above the lunar surface, the Artemis II astronauts heard the voice of Apollo‑13 commander Jim Lovell greeting them from beyond the grave, a message recorded shortly before his death at 97. Mission control transmitted the tribute on the morning of 6 April, when astronaut Reid Wiseman held a silk square bearing the original Apollo 8 patch—handed to him by Lovell’s son—before the crew’s launch. Launch director Charlie Blackwell‑Thompson secured a unanimous "go" from every console, a moment the author describes as a snapshot of humanity’s capacity to honor the past while reaching for the future. The ceremony stood in stark contrast to the Pentagon’s agenda. Two decades after a 2006 Iraqi kill‑board note reading “Let the bodies hit the floor,” the current defense chief pledged “death and destruction from the sky all day long” against Iran, a stance legal scholars warn could constitute a war crime. That rhetoric accompanies a proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget, including an additional $200 billion earmarked for operations against Iran—figures that dwarf NASA’s entire annual budget of $24.4 billion. Amid this fiscal disparity, crew members reflected on their place in history. Victor Glover, the first Black astronaut to travel deep space, described the view of Earth as an "oasis" in the void, while Christina Koch, the first woman to orbit the Moon, pressed her face to the window and formed a heart with her hands, calling the mission’s spirit "humility." Reid Wiseman watched the planet rotate beneath him, noting the sight of Africa, Europe, and the aurora‑lit north, saying it "paused all four of us in our tracks." Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen broke Jim Lovell’s 56‑year distance record and asked mission control to name a lunar feature after his late wife, Carroll. The crew agreed, designating a bright spot on the Moon as "Carroll," a tribute that will endure beyond any single lifetime. When Koch announced the spacecraft’s descent, she radioed, "We are now falling to the moon rather than rising away from Earth," a poetic reversal that underscored the mission’s symbolic return. The article recalls the author’s 2022 reflection on the James Webb Space Telescope, noting how humanity’s finest inventions now aim outward, seeking answers to our origins rather than turning inward toward conflict. Artemis II’s vessel, named Integrity, carried four breathing humans who, in a moment of collective grief, pressed their faces to the glass and imagined the faces of every loved one ever lived, captured in a single frame. Beyond the spacecraft, cultural threads wove through the mission: Hansen’s patch displayed the Seven Sacred Teachings of the Anishinaabe people, and the Chinese myth of Chang’e reminded viewers of the Moon’s timeless allure. As Carl Sagan famously wrote, "We are made of star‑stuff," the Artemis crew embodied that sentiment—not as passive observers, but as active participants in a fragile, hopeful narrative that rises above the relentless tally of bodies on Earth’s battlefields.

Director Luca Guadagnino has come to the defense of actor Timothée Chalamet after Chalamet faced backlash for suggesting that ballet and opera are art forms that "no one cares about" anymore.Guadagnino, who cast Chalamet in his breakthrough role in Call Me By Your Name, stated that the reaction to Chalamet's comments was disproportionate. "I am not on social media and don’t understand how one [single] comment can become a planetary polemic," Guadagnino said in an interview with Italian newspaper La Stampa.Guadagnino, who made his opera debut in 2011 with a production of Verdi’s Falstaff, noted that Chalamet "could have spared himself … but he’s young, smart, sensitive, and he fears that cinema could become marginal." He emphasized the importance of nurturing all forms of imagination and uniting the arts, rather than separating them.Chalamet's remarks sparked significant backlash from the ballet and opera communities, including Jamie Lee Curtis and Whoopi Goldberg, who publicly criticized him. The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino invited Chalamet to attend Guadagnino's production of The Death of Klinghoffer, saying, "Come and see for yourself that opera is alive, kicking and actually matters to people."

More than 1,000 film and television professionals have signed an open letter opposing Paramount’s pending acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, a deal valued at $111 billion. The signatories include high‑profile names such as Joaquin Phoenix, Ben Stiller, Mark Ruffalo, Yorgos Lanthimos, Kristen Stewart, Jane Fonda, and Emma Thompson.The letter, published on BlocktheMerger.com, warns that the merger would undermine the integrity, independence and diversity of the U.S. media sector, consolidating the number of major studios to just four and jeopardising a "vibrant future" for what it calls America’s "single most significant export" – its cultural content.Signatories argue that media consolidation already weakens competition, leading to fewer mid‑budget films, reduced independent distribution, higher production costs and fewer jobs across the ecosystem. They stress that competition is essential for both a healthy economy and a healthy democracy.Among the notable supporters are directors Denis Villeneuve, Boots Riley, Mimi Leder and Nicole Holofcener, as well as TV veterans David Chase, Noah Wyle, Ramy Youssef, Rob Delaney, Jason Bateman and Ted Danson. The letter also praises California Attorney General Rob Bonta and other state officials for scrutinising the deal.Paramount CEO David Ellison, who outbid Netflix for Warner Bros, claims the merger will boost creative output, pledging to release 30 theatrical titles annually and invest in both studios. Critics, however, remain skeptical, pointing to the Ellisons’ political ties and the risk of fewer politically‑engaged films.Recent accolades underscore the stakes: Warner Bros productions captured a record 11 Oscars in March, while Paramount films earned no nominations. The industry fears that the combined entity could further diminish quality and lead to significant job losses.Paramount has responded with a statement emphasizing that the transaction will “create a company that can greenlight more projects, back bold ideas, support talent across multiple stages of their careers, and bring stories to audiences at a truly global scale—while strengthening competition.” The letter’s authors remain unconvinced, urging regulators to block the merger to preserve competition, protect jobs, and safeguard the cultural export that defines American cinema.

Plans to alter the size of HS2 trains, aimed at maximizing capacity, may result in increased costs and fewer seats, potentially leading to slower services north of Birmingham. A senior government and rail industry figure, Chris Gibb, has warned against changing the train order.The original £2bn order for 54 high-speed trains, to be built by a joint venture of Alstom and Hitachi, was placed in 2021. However, the project has been under review since the cancellation of the northern leg of HS2 by Rishi Sunak in 2023. The initial plan was for the 200-metre, eight-carriage units to double into 16-carriage trains, similar in size to a Eurostar. But this will only be feasible on the new line between London and Birmingham, as existing stations like Manchester Piccadilly cannot accommodate a 400-metre train.Gibb, a non-executive director of DfT Operator, expressed concerns that if HS2 opens with eight-coach trains, they would be full, leaving people behind. He suggested that instead of varying the train order, which could incur extra costs and delays, the government should retain the original order and plan to replace the current Pendolino fleet with longer, faster, modern versions around 2040.This approach, Gibb argued, would provide a significant increase in capacity, revenue, and a reduction in journey times on all routes without the need for further railway construction. Lord McLoughlin, former transport secretary, and Lord Berkeley, a long-term HS2 sceptic, have backed Gibb's idea, emphasizing the importance of consistent rolling stock for future use.A spokesperson for HS2 Ltd stated that no changes have been made to the original order, and they are still working closely with the manufacturer and the DfT to finalize train designs. The trains will be built in Derby and Newton Aycliffe.

Acclaimed director Ken Loach revisits his 2016 film I, Daniel Blake, a poignant portrayal of poverty and the struggles faced by those in need. The film, which sparked controversy upon its release, shed light on the cruel realities of a system that vilifies the vulnerable.Loach reveals that the film was born out of a time of 'mean-spiritedness,' where those who needed support were met with punishment. The story follows Daniel Blake, a character who desperately wants to work but is thwarted by a system designed to fail him.The film's screenwriter, Paul Laverty, conducted extensive research, including a visit to a Glasgow food bank, where he encountered a young man who had not eaten in two to three days. This harrowing experience inspired a pivotal scene in the film, where Katie, played by Hayley Squires, is forced to eat cold baked beans from a tin.Loach notes that at the time of the film's release, the notion of food banks as an institution was unimaginable. However, food banks are now a normalized part of society, with many people relying on them to survive. The film's portrayal of poverty and hunger was met with resistance from some, including Damian Green, who claimed it was a work of fiction. Loach counters that while the characters are fictional, the stories are rooted in truth.Hayley Squires, who played Katie, shares her experience working on the film. She was drawn to the project after meeting Loach and was impressed by his authenticity and warmth. The film's shooting process was unique, with Squires and her co-star Dave Johns working chronologically and improvising scenes.Squires also recounts her preparation for the food bank scene, which included visiting a real food bank and cutting back on food to better understand the experience of hunger. The scene was shot only once, with Loach and the cinematographer Robbie Ryan working to create a sense of empathy and realism.