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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 NoéRachel BrosnahanAmy 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: Blu-ray of the FIVE ARMIES!

UPDATE: This contest has ended. Congratulations to Kathryn Appleman!

The Battle of the Five Armies rages on, and Kicking the Seat wants to put you in the middle of the fray with our brand-new contest! Last week, we gave away a digital download of Peter Jackson's blockbuster Hobbit finale. Now, we've teamed up with PartnersHub to award one lucky reader a Blu-ray Combo Pack of the film!

This Blu-ray is more stuffed than a hobbit after second breakfast, with fantastical extras including:

New Zealand: Home of Middle-Earth Part 3 
Recruiting the Five Armies 
• Completing Middle-earth: A Six-Part Saga 
• Completing Middle-earth: A Seventeen-Year Journey 
• The Last Goodbye: Behind the Scenes 

• Music Video 
• Trailers

Here's a taste:

To Enter: Take the "Are You Brave Like Bilbo?" 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 22 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 more 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: Blu-ray 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) Blu-ray Combo Pack 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 Giveaway: The Chicago Critics Film Festival!

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