PREMEDITATED

Tipped for the Oscars, “Hamnet” was released on November 26th. When the movie showed at film festivals, the director, Chloé Zhao, invited the audience to join her in an act of collective meditation before the screening. Among her instructions: “Close your eyes,” “Feel your own weight,” “Take deep breaths with sound,” “Sigh out loud,” and “Gently say to yourself, “This is my heart. These are our hearts.”

- BY ANTHONY LANE

Would this ritual not have improved the viewing experience of many earlier films?

"Gladiator"

Close your eyes. Breathe in. Know that you are not alone. Three seats to your left, for instance, is a tiger. As you hear it noisily devouring the two moviegoers between you, sense how deeply you are tuned in to the rhythms of the natural world. Now reach beneath your seat. There you will find a helmet, a trident, and a shield. These will protect you, though not for long. Gather your peacefulness, turn to the tiger, and declare, “My name is Maximus Ridiculus Dave, buyer of an overpriced ticket, slurper of an outsized Coke, and I will watch my movie, in this theatre or the next.”

"The Lord of the Rings"