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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.

Ep349: Page2Screen: Phoenix-washing

Today, The Kicking the Seat Podcast and ColeTries.com return with a special edition of "Page2Screen", in which Ian and Cole Rush break down Eli Roth's film adaptation of the John Bellairs novel, The House with a Clock in Its Walls!

The guys have very different opinions on the book, in which a young orphan goes to live with his strange uncle and discovers a house full of dark magic--including the eponymous clock, whose ever-present ticking could herald the apocalypse. They find some common ground when discussing the movie, which stars Jack Black and Cate Blanchett, and the wide-ranging discussion may just break new ground in Ian and Cole's ongoing collaborations.

Also, Ian congratulates the Housesitters team on their successful Kickstarter campaign; reminds listeners to head to the Music Box Theatre to bask in the 70MM Film Festival's big, big-screen glory; and prompts Cole to share two new ventures/adventures on which he's embarking!

Episode 349 is based on a beloved childhood classic!

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EP350: YEAR OF THE DRAGON

Ep348: Black & Dekker Cage Match