profile pic ian.jpg

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.

Ep657: Late Screening: DEFENDING YOUR LIFE

Ep657: Late Screening: DEFENDING YOUR LIFE

Ian Simmons

Ian and Cole are dying to share their thoughts on Albert Brooks' brilliant afterlife comedy, Defending Your Life!

Brooks plays Daniel Miller, an L.A. advertising exec whose accidental death finds him on trial in an otherworldly courtroom. This rich, inventive comedy also stars Meryl Streep and Rip Torn. The guys dig into the movie's many surprises, including deep themes, an off-beat pop-cultural legacy, and a main character whose lack of dimension sticks out like a sore thumb.

"Late Screening" is Kicking the Seat's monthly series in which 'Millennial Correspondent' Cole Rush watches a film he's never seen before and talks with Ian about the experience.

Show Links:

  • Watch the Defending Your Life trailer.

  • Read Alex Tas's excellent article on Mad Max: Fury Road at The Quill to Live (referenced in this discussion).

  • Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ep658: Hammerland: DRACULA: PRINCE OF DARKNESS (1966)

Ep658: Hammerland: DRACULA: PRINCE OF DARKNESS (1966)
Ep656: MORTAL KOMBAT (2021) - Movie Review

Ep656: MORTAL KOMBAT (2021) - Movie Review