Don’t kick the seats and switch off your smartwatch: Guardian critics on how to be a better audience member

No laughing matter … forcing a guffaw to put the actors at ease my not go down well with the rest of the audience. Illustration: Mark Long/The Guardian

Cinema

Don’t talk during the opening credits
Not talking during the film should be a given. It is OK to talk (quietly) during the ads and it is similarly OK to talk (even more quietly) during the trailers. But the microsecond the film starts then you shut up. The credits are not like two football teams warming up before kickoff. The credits are part of the film.