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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.

Ep988: HARD MILES (2024) - Movie Review

Ep988: HARD MILES (2024) - Movie Review

Ian Simmons

Ian and Pat are looking at a new movie, for a change, but there's no reason that Hard Miles couldn't become a classic!

R.J. Daniel Hanna's latest film stars Matthew Modine as Greg Townsend, a real-life Colorado teacher and cycling enthusiast who created a program in which he takes troubled youth on character-building bike rides to the Grand Canyon.

In this spoiler-free review, the guys talk about how this surprising, gorgeously shot, and genuinely uplifting film demands to be seen on the big screen, and how it speaks to a forgotten voice in mainstream Hollywood movies. They also recommend other recent examples of uplifting "Based on a True Story" films that may have flown under your radar.

Hard Miles is now playing in theatres nationwide.

Subscribe, like, and comment to the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel, and check out kickseat.com for multiple movie podcasts each week!

Show Links

  • Watch the Hard Miles trailer.

  • Bonus! Listen to Pat's interviews with Hard Miles co-writer/director R.J. Daniel Hanna and star Matthew Modine for HollywoodChicago.com!

  • Listen to Pat's movie reviews on the radio at STAR 96.7.

  • Can't get enough of Ian and Pat? Check out their regular retro repartee in our "There's No Stalgia Like Nostalgia" Playlist!

Ep989: PENNIES FROM HEAVEN (1981) - Movie Review w/ Armond White

Ep989: PENNIES FROM HEAVEN (1981) - Movie Review w/ Armond White
Ep987: Gettin' Our Phil: BATMAN (1989)

Ep987: Gettin' Our Phil: BATMAN (1989)