The Critics

Romcom revival

Making romcoms modern: plausible obstacles to happiness and a broadening of vision

Animation grows up

Jibaro is an artistic triumph

It’s not for kids

Children are always unwelcome in Opera, except in The Magic Flute

Dem bones, dem sky-high bones

Dinosaur skeletons have stalked their way out of the museum world and into that of well-heeled collectors

A hellhole Noël

Stalag 17 followed by Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life is an ideal festive double-bill

Midnight’s mass

Taylor Swift’s talent for ordinariness that makes her the most exceptional artist at work today

Bragg shows what is possible

A show worth the licence fee by itself

Killer thrillers

The creators of Gangs of London could learn a lot from SAS Rogue Heroes

Women on the edge

A feminist frame that doesn’t fit

Norse mode

How John Gabriel Borkman is a hard Ibsen play to like