Lena Khan’s The Tiger Hunter is a deceptively complex comedy about an Indian immigrant (Danny Pudi) angling for a prestigious American engineering job, which he hopes will help him win his lifelong crush’s (Karen David) hand in marriage. Anyone who’s ever watched TV or movies will recognize most of the story beats, but Khan, co-writer Sameer Asad Gardezi, and their wonderful cast inject the film with such earnest, infectious energy that the plot becomes a tertiary concern. The Tiger Hunter can be enjoyed by the whole family, but it’s not a “kids’ film”. Rather, it’s a gateway to cultural empathy, and a reminder of what makes America so attractive that people with advanced degrees would travel thousands of miles to work as draftsmen, cab drivers, and dog walkers—all for the promise of a shot at something greater. This is a sweet, funny, and powerful movie about self-determination, community, and love.
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.