Kicking the Seat

They say all good things must come to an end, "Hammerland" is no exception.

But not quite yet!

Ian and AC still have another terrifying year ahead as they wind down their half-decade mission to explore all the weird, chilling corners of the Hammer Films universe.

Today, they look at 1960's offbeat thriller, The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll! Paul Massie stars as the titular doctor whose obsession with the duality of human nature drives him to unleash a dashingly handsome, psychotic id named Edward Hyde.

What sets Terence Fisher's adaptation apart from many others is the emphasis on Hyde's mind games, as he manipulates, seduces, and murders his way through Jekyll's social circle.

In this spoilerific review, Ian and AC talk about screenwriter Wolf Mankowitz's bold take on the Robert Louis Stevenson novel, and how it differs from previous stabs at the material. The guys also marvel at Massie's performance, which suggests a bloodthirsty beast more than grotesque makeup ever could.

So pack your bags and make for the passenger's seat: We're gettin' outta town before sundown!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

• kickseat.com

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• Watch the Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (1960) trailer.

• Follow along with all of AC's macabre musings at Horror 101 w/ Dr. AC!

• Order AC's books on essential and obscure horror movies, Horror 101 and Hidden Horror!

• Subscribe to AC's YouTube channel, Horror 101 with Dr. AC.

• Grab only what you can carry as we "Escape from Hammerland"!

• Hitch a ride with our entire 2024 series in the "Return to Hammerland" Playlist!

• It’s not too late to catch up with our 2023 trip “Beyond Hammerland”!

• Check out 2022's year-long journey, "Son of Hammerland"!

• And watch the series that started it all: "Hammerland"

At long last, Earth's Mightiest Critics are tackling The Brutalist!

Brady Corbet's sprawling, mid-century immigration-and-architecture epic stars Adrian Brody as László Tóth, a Hungarian Jew who escapes to America at the end of World War II. After struggling to survive on the streets of post-War Pennsylvania, the renowned architect is commissioned by multi-millionaire businessman Harrison Van Buren (Guy Pearce) to build a community center in his mother's name.

The film spans the turbulent decade of the men's relationship, and Tóth's struggles with guilt, drugs, and the disabled wife (Felicity Jones) he was forced to leave behind.

There's a lot more to the story than that synopsis, and the EMC will get into all of the sordid, spoilery details! Does The Brutalist earn its 3-hour-35-minute runtime? Or is Brady Corbet officially the "Stephen King of Movies" (i.e. can't end a compelling story to save his life)?

Join us as we construct and deconstruct one of this year's Oscar front-runners! We'll also take your questions, comments, and SuperChats!

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• Watch the Brutalist trailer.

• Bonus! Revisit Ian and Jeff's discussion on AI in the arts from last year (it comes up in this episode in a most fiery and unexpected way)!

• Support all of Earth's Mightiest Critics at their various outlets:

  • Check out Mark "The Movie Man" Krawczyk's The Spoiler Room Podcast.

  • Keep up with Jeff York's criticism and caricatures at The Establishing Shot and Pipeline Artists.

  • Get seated with The Blonde in Front!

  • Follow David Fowlie's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.

  • Get educated with Don Shanahan at Every Movie Has a Lesson…

    • ...And Film Obsessive

    • ...and the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.

  • Keep up with Annie Banks at The Mary Sue.

    • ...and We Got This Covered.

  • Make Nice with Mike Crowley of You'll Probably Agree.

  • And stir things up with Will Johnson of the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.

Ian sits down with writer/director Adam Rehmeier and stars Kyle Gallner and Emily Skeggs to talk about their cult hit comedy, Dinner in America!

Gallner stars as Simon, a troubled and struggling punk rocker who will do anything to break out of his small Michigan town (and avoid the cops). He meets Patty (Skeggs), a twenty-year-old pet store worker whom everyone writes off as mentally challenged (the movie is not so precise with its words). Together, they embark on a spree of awakening, revenge, and even...*gulp* love in this twisted romp that recalls Heathers, Pump Up the Volume, and Welcome to the Dollhouse!

The film's 2020 release was knee-capped by a global pandemic, but has recently found new life through social media. In this spoiler-lite round table, the cast and creator talk about bringing their in-your-face suburban-malaise fable to life; bringing out the actors' wild side to play characters very different from themselves; and how fandom has finally caught up with Dinner in America!

Plus: We're pretty sure Emily performs magic at the end! Oh, and before we forget: Adam, Emily, and Kyle will be in Chicago this Monday at the Windy City's historic Music Box Theatre for exclusive screenings and Q&A's of the film. See below for more info on this One-Night-Only event!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

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• Watch the Dinner in America trailer.

• Get tickets (while you still can--the 7pm show is sold out) to The Music Box Theatre's special 9:45pm Dinner in America screening happening this Monday, February 3rd. Adam, Emily, and Kyle will be in attendance for a post-screening Q&A!

• Can't make it to Chicago? You can stream Dinner in America at home via Hulu (but, seriously, get your butt to Chi-town!).

Critics everywhere are coming down with acute air sickness, thanks to Mel Gibson's latest film, Flight Risk. But at least two of Earth's Mightiest Critics think it's one of the best moviegoing experiences they've had in years!

There's a major caveat, of course: Ian and David saw the movie in 4DX (yeah, that setup where they shake your chair and hurl smoke and water at you)!

The film centers on a US Marshal (Michelle Dockery) who must transport a mob case witness (Topher Grace) to a Seattle courthouse--by way of a rickety Cessna flying over the snowy Alaskan wilderness. Their pilot (Mark Wahlberg) just happens to be a mob assassin and, well, things go south up north!

Join us for a turbulent look at the latest from the Academy Award-winning director of Braveheart and Hacksaw Ridge! We also talk spoilers and take your questions, comments, and SuperChats!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

• kickseat.com

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• BlueSky

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Show Links

• Watch the Flight Risk trailer.

• Support all of Earth's Mightiest Critics at their various outlets:

  • Check out Mark "The Movie Man" Krawczyk's The Spoiler Room Podcast.

  • Keep up with Jeff York's criticism and caricatures at The Establishing Shot and Pipeline Artists.

  • Get seated with The Blonde in Front!

  • Follow David Fowlie's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.

  • Get educated with Don Shanahan at Every Movie Has a Lesson…

    • ...And Film Obsessive

    • ...and the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.

  • Keep up with Annie Banks at The Mary Sue.

    • ...and We Got This Covered.

  • Make Nice with Mike Crowley of You'll Probably Agree.

  • And stir things up with Will Johnson of the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.

We bid a final farewell to 2024 with this special IndieSeen look at last year's "Most Interesting Indies"!

Sujewa recently posted a list of his favorite independent movies at DIY Filmmaker, and he touches on each of them with Ian--who also throws in a couple of contenders that are worth watching. Not all of these films came out last year, but the guys watched them in 2024.

Is that cheating?

Maybe.

But great recommendations are great recommendations!

Plus: The guys say a few words in memory of filmmaker David Lynch and arthouse theatre pioneer Robert Laemmle; throw some (rhetorical) water on the California fires; and further decrease the odds of Hong Sang-soo making a guest appearance on the show!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

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• Read the post that inspired this conversation!

• Watch Sujewa's latest film, Cosmic Disco Detective Rene for free on YouTube!

• Rent The Secret Society for Slow Romance (the predecessor to Cosmic Disco Detective Rene).

• Follow Sujewa on X.

• Check out all the episodes in our “IndieSeen” Playlist!

Ian and Luke were slow to catch up with the super-fast characters in Sonic the Hedgehog 3--but that won't stop the latest "Target Audience" review!

This week the guys caught one of the last screenings of the 2024 holiday hit, even though they've never seen the first two films! Were they utterly lost during Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails's latest adventure? Or did the movie set things up just right to make this a comfy entry point to the Sega (er, saga)?

Check it out to find out!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

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• Watch the Sonic 3 (2024) trailer.

• Catch up with all of Ian and Luke's reviews in our "Target Audience" Playlist!

Earth's Mightiest Critics pounce on their first theatrical-release review of the year with a look at Leigh Whannell's Wolf Man!

In this twist on the classic Universal monster movie, Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner play Blake and Charlotte, a dysfunctional married couple who, along with their young daughter, Ginger (Matilda Firth), visit Blake's rural childhood home after his father's death. The family encounters a savage creature in the woods, which attacks Chris and transfers a lycanthropic curse to him.

Who will survive the night? And will Dad still be "Dad"--or the new family pet?

Critics and audiences alike have savaged Whannell's Wolf Man, but there's at least one critic who thinks everyone is missing the point.

Join us for a transformative look at this divisive horror movie! We'll also take your questions, comments, and SuperChats!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

• kickseat.com

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Show Links

• Watch the Flight Risk trailer.

• Bonus! Listen to Ian's 2018 interview with writer/director Leigh Whannell about his film Upgrade!

• Support all of Earth's Mightiest Critics at their various outlets:

  • Check out Mark "The Movie Man" Krawczyk's The Spoiler Room Podcast.

  • Keep up with Jeff York's criticism and caricatures at The Establishing Shot and Pipeline Artists.

  • Get seated with The Blonde in Front!

  • Follow David Fowlie's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.

  • Get educated with Don Shanahan at Every Movie Has a Lesson…

    • ...And Film Obsessive

    • ...and the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.

  • Keep up with Annie Banks at The Mary Sue.

    • ...and We Got This Covered.

  • Make Nice with Mike Crowley of You'll Probably Agree.

  • And stir things up with Will Johnson of the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.

Vivian Kerr's Scrap is one of the best films Ian has seen in years.

In today's very special episode, he sits down with the writer/director/producer/star to talk about her journey from taking bit roles in Hollywood productions to striking out on her own with a dazzling feature debut.

The film centers on Bet (Kerr), a single mom living in Los Angeles, whose recent homelessness compels her to temporarily place daughter Birdy (Julianna Layne) with her older brother, Ben (Anthony Rapp), and his wife, Stacy (Lana Parilla). As Beth struggles against unemployment and her lifelong addiction to delusion, we discover that people in her orbit are also dealing with their own issues--resulting in conflicts that are alternately comic and poignant.

In this interview, Kerr talks about the challenges and triumphs of putting herself behind the creative wheel (rather than bringing other creators' visions come to life); the logistics of putting together an independent movie during COVID; and catching the directing "bug". Ian also asks about Vivian's next project, the wildly different supernatural period drama, Seance, which recently premiered at the Newport Beach Film Festival!

Note: The show begins with a PSA/apology on Ian's part. There was an issue with his microphone during the conversation, which he didn't discover until afterward. Thanks to digital manipulation, his audio now sounds...passable!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

• kickseat.com

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• Watch the Scrap trailer.

• Read Ian's 5/5 review of Scrap at Kicking the Seat.

• Learn more about Scrap on the film's official website.

• Follow Scrap on Instagram.

• Check out the trailer for Vivian's follow-up feature, Seance!

• And follow Seance on Instagram, too!

• Keep up with all things Vivian at her production company, Rue Dangeau!

2025 is a year of renewal at Kicking the Seat--so we're bringing back something old! That's right "Don't Read the Comments!" returns!

Join Ian for a courageous quest of cantankerous (and congenial) correspondence! He'll read the best of the past month's comments from the KtS YouTube channel and kickseat.com--and respond with as much dignity and grace as he can muster!

And, yes, he'll also respond to chats and SuperChats while reacting to other comments. How meta!

If you’d like to see your comment read and responded to in this or a future "Don't Read the Comments" video, simply...leave a comment on YouTube, kickseat.com, Facebook, or Twitch!

Earth's Mightiest Critics put their heads together for a 30th anniversary round table review of Se7en!

David Fincher's gritty downer of a thriller follows two cops (Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman) in their pursuit of a homicidal maniac whose M.O. centers on the Seven Deadly Sins. Each crime scene is more grislier than the last, and our heroes are always three steps behind. Could it be that they are being set up as the final victims?

Join us for an unrepentant look at one of the 90s' most disturbing and influential films! We'll also take your questions, comments, and SuperChats!

Subscribe, like, and comment on Kicking the Seat here on YouTube, and check us out at:

• kickseat.com

• X

• Letterboxd

• BlueSky

• Instagram

• Facebook

Show Links

• Watch the Se7en trailer.

• Order the brand new Se7en 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray from Warner Bros.

• Support all of Earth's Mightiest Critics at their various outlets:

  • Check out Mark "The Movie Man" Krawczyk's The Spoiler Room Podcast.

  • Keep up with Jeff York's criticism and caricatures at The Establishing Shot and Pipeline Artists.

  • Get seated with The Blonde in Front!

  • Follow David Fowlie's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.

  • Get educated with Don Shanahan at Every Movie Has a Lesson…

    • ...And Film Obsessive

    • ...and the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.

  • Keep up with Annie Banks at The Mary Sue.

    • ...and We Got This Covered.

  • Make Nice with Mike Crowley of You'll Probably Agree.

  • And stir things up with Will Johnson of the Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast.