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Welcome to Kicking the Seat!

Ian Simmons launched Kicking the Seat in 2009, one week after seeing Nora Ephron’s Julie & Julia. His wife proposed blogging as a healthier outlet for his anger than red-faced, twenty-minute tirades (Ian is no longer allowed to drive home from the movies).

The Kicking the Seat Podcast followed three years later and, despite its “undiscovered gem” status, Ian thoroughly enjoys hosting film critic discussions, creating themed shows, and interviewing such luminaries as Gaspar Noé, Rachel Brosnahan, Amy Seimetz, and Richard Dreyfuss.

Ian is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association. He also has a family, a day job, and conflicted feelings about referring to himself in the third person.

The KtS Contest: THE HOBBIT: Download of the FIVE ARMIES!

Ian Simmons

UPDATE: This contest has ended. Congratulations, Sara!

The final installment of Peter Jackson's Hobbit trilogy is now available on home video! To celebrate, Kicking the Seat has teamed with Partnershub to award one lucky reader a Digital HD Download of The Battle of the Five Armies!

Adapting J.R.R. Tolkien's enduringly popular masterpiece, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies brings to an epic conclusion the adventures of Bilbo Baggins, Thorin Oakenshield and the Company of Dwarves. Having reclaimed their homeland from the Dragon Smaug, the Company has unwittingly unleashed a deadly force into the world. Join them as they struggle to bring peace to a divided Middle Earth!

To Enter: Take the "Middle Earth Weapon of Choice" Quiz in the blog app below, and enter your final answer in this post's "Comments" section. I'll pick one entrant at random to win this awesome prize!

All entries must be received by 11:59pm on Wednesday, April 1, 2015.

In the meantime, be sure to explore the rest of the blog app's interactive features, including a trivia-filled map of Middle Earth and information on The Battle of the Five Armies' blu-ray/HD Download release!

Thanks for entering, and good luck!

Eligibility: This post is sponsored by and in promotion of Warner Home Video. All prizes for the "The Hobbit: Download of the Five Armies" Contest, and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Blog App, are provided courtesy of Warner Home Video. Prize will be sent via FedEx or USPS. No P.O. boxes, please. Each household is only eligible to win one (1) Digital Copy of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies via blog reviews and giveaways. Only one (1) entrant per mailing address per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you will not be eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification. Notification: Kicking the Seat will contact the contest winner within twelve (12) hours of contest close. If no response is received within twenty-four (24) hours, an alternate winner will be chosen. Contest is open to residents of the USA and Canada.

The KtS Contest: Blu-ray of the FIVE ARMIES!

The KtS Contest: STONE AGE SMACKDOWN!