Kicking the Seat

It's double the terror, triple the fun as "Son of Hammerland" looks at 1971's Twins of Evil!This second sequel to The Vampire Lovers finds the vampiric Curse of Karnstein awakening impure thoughts and bloodlust in a decadent count and a young woman living in the shadow of witch-burning Puritanism. Frieda (Madeleine Collinson) is seduced by the count, but her twin sister, Maria (Mary Collinson) holds fast to her belief in God. Meanwhile, their uncle Gustav (Peter Cushing) wages a war on sin--which, unfortunately, blinds him to the truly sinister forces governing the land.Ian and AC take a bite out of this lavish and thrilling rebuke of hypocrisy, which sees Cushing deliver another career-best performance and adds several layers to the vampire mythos!All proceeds from this year's Scare-a-Thon will benefit the Women's Reproductive Rights Assistance Project (WRRAP), a non-partisan, nonprofit organization assisting women who are financially unable to pay for safe, legal abortions or emergency contraceptives. Please donate via the link below, if you are so moved.Show Links:Watch the Twins of Evil (1971) trailer.Read Aaron's written review of Twins of Evil (1971).Support WRRAP via our Scare-a-Thon donation link on Plumfund.Watch Ian and AC talk about The Vampire Lovers (1970).Catch up on previous "Son of Hammerland" episodes!And watch the series that started it all: "Hammerland"!Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

This long-overdue (and just plain long) dive into the virtual mailbag is packed with funny, fascinating personal stories; movie recommendations; and (surprise!) conflicting opinions about the latest releases!Plus: Ian tries his hand at a "reaction video"!Show Links:Check out the shows and posts that inspired all this fun and fawning feedback!Accademia Giallo: The House with Laughing Windows (1976)Slash Fiction: An Interview with I Blame Society Director Gillian Wallace HorvatDon't Read the Comments! 8/3/22Don't Read the Comments! 9/7/22Don't Read the Comments! 9/16/22 (RRR Special!)Dog Soldiers (2002) - 20th Anniversary Review Clerks III (2022) - Movie ReviewKicking the Seat's 600th Subscriber Spectacular - Play Button Reveal!IndieSeen: Henry Fool at 25 w/ Thomas Jay RyanPinocchio (2022) - Round Table ReviewThere's No Stalgia Like Nostalgia: Little Fauss and Big Halsy (1970) Hammerland: The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974)Son of Hammerland: The Vampire Lovers (1970)Hammerland: Frankenstein and the Monster From HellSon of Hammerland: The Mummy (1959)Son of Hammerland: The Plague of the Zombies / The Reptile (1966)Hammerland: Dracula Has Risen from the GraveHammerland: Frankenstein Must Be DestroyedHammerland: Frankenstein Created WomanSon of Hammerland: The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)Featured Extras: Poltergeist (1982)Accademia Giallo: Blood and Black Lace (1964) - Rivisitato!Son of Hammerland: The Devil Rides Out (1968)Blonde (2022) - Movie ReviewFunny Pages (2022) - Movie ReviewAccademia Giallo: Eyeball (1975)Accademia Giallo: Blue Eyes of the Broken DollKicking the Seat Spooky Season Preview 2022!Hammerland: Dracula A.D. 1972Scare-a-Thon 2021: Accademia Giallo: The Killer Reserved Nine SeatsPalling Around with Jon Stevenson and Brian Landis Folkins of Rent-A-PalThere's No Stalgia Like Nostalgia: The Virgin Suicides (1999)The Munsters (2022) - Movie ReviewHalloween Ends (2022) - Movie ReviewOnur Unbound! Slacker Vampires, Children's Books & Halloween Ends on the Eve of Nuclear Armageddon!Tumbbad (2018) - Round Table Review LIVE!Scare-a-Thon 2022: Bram Stoker’s Dracula 30th Anniversary Round Table Review LIVE!Kicking the Seat's 700th Subscriber Spectacular - Play Button Reveal!Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Spooky season continues with the movie you've been screaming for! By popular demand, we're continuing our dive into Indian cinema with a look at the 2018 terrifer, Tumbbad!Inspired by S.S. Rajamouli's mind-blowing historical epic RRR, Ian and the gang are venturing into a cinematic genre unfamiliar to themselves--aiming to further their movie knowledge and bring greater attention to films that make American blockbusters look (even more) foolish in comparison!India, 1918. On the outskirts of Tumbbad, a cursed village where it always rains, Vinayak, along with his mother and his brother, cares for a mysterious old woman who keeps the secret of an ancestral treasure that Vinayak gets obsessed with.But that's just the beginning of this dark and layered story about greed and poisoned familial legacies. Ian and Mark "The Movie Man" Krawczyk plumb the depths of Rahi Anil Barve's surprisingly effective thriller and, thanks to several comments during the livestream, plant the seeds for next month's installment!Tumbbad is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.Show Links:Watch the Tumbbad (2018) trailer.Get spoilt with Wisconsin's official "Backbone of Horror", Mark Krawczyk of The Spoiler Room Podcast.Check out Earth's Mightiest Critics round table review of RRR.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ian welcomes back filmmaker Onur Tukel for a wide-ranging discussion about...well, everything!What began as a podcast meant to talk about the writer/director/actor's 2014 phenomenal indie vampire comedy, Summer of Blood; his recent children's book collaboration with Halloween Ends director David Gordon Green, and his just-about-finished new feature, Poundcake, quickly expanded to include topics as mundane as home fire safety and as high-wire-walking as racism and cancel culture.The guys also lay the groundwork for episodes about Onur's entire filmography!Strap in. Open your ears, hearts, and minds wide.And remember: Timestamps are your friend!Timestamps:Intro: 0:00 - 0:38Home Fire Safety and Nuclear Armageddon: 0:39 - 7:39Summer of Blood: 7:40 - 10:52White-guy Culture: 10:53 - 27:40Poundcake: 27:41 - 30:34Long COVID?: 30:35 - 36:30Creativity and Contentment: 36:31 - 47:22Authentically Turkish: 47:23 - 54:49The Uninvited Film Festival: 54:50 - 1:00:37Headspace: 1:00:38 - 1:07:23Let’s Make a Movie! (Children's Book): 1:07:24 - 1:18:39The Artist's Way: 1:18:40 - 1:39:05Outro #1: 1:39:06 - 1:41:32Halloween Ends: 1:41:33 - 1:53:58Outro #2: 1:53:59 - 1:55:14Show Links:Watch the Summer of Blood trailer.Order the new Summer of Blood Blu-ray from Factory 25.Order Let’s Make a Movie! by David Gordon Green and Onur Tukel.Keep up with all of Onur's films and creative projects at his website, Simian Nation.Watch Ian and Sujewa's conversation with Onur from earlier this year.Watch Ian and David Fowlie review Halloween Ends (mentioned in the show).Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ian talks with actor, producer, and founder of Pigasus Pictures Zach Spicer about starting a production company in Indiana and producing one of the year's best horror films, So Cold the River!From inspiring conversations with Kenneth Branagh; to breaking out of guest spots on TV shows like Law & Order and Gotham; to reconnecting with his Midwest roots in building a sustainable, dedicated community of local filmmaking talent, this conversation is a testament to the power of dreams and the impact of sheer determination.Zach also talks Runner (debuting now at the Chicago International Film Festival); Pigasus' plans for the future, and the oddly spiritual undercurrent in their slate of films!Show Links:Learn more about Pigasus Pictures at their website.Watch the So Cold the River trailer.Watch the Runner trailer.Watch the Good Catholic trailer.Watch the Ms. White Light trailer.Watch the Miseducation of Bindu trailer.And check out Ian's Interview with So Cold the River director Paul Shoulberg and Producer Claire Tuft.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Scare-a-Thon gets groovy with a 35th-anniversary review of Sam Raimi's Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn!Yes, before he manned the Multiverse of Madness, Raimi made wildly entertaining and memorable films (sorry, couldn't resist!). Bruce Campbell stars as Ash Williams, a hapless doof whose romantic getaway weekend turns into a guts-soaked nightmare of undead shenanigans!Join us for a double-barrelled blast of horror/comedy as we give this movie some sugar!We'll be live every Friday throughout October with special anniversary discussions of classic horror films--all benefiting the Women's Reproductive Rights Assistance Project (WRRAP), a non-partisan, nonprofit organization assisting women who are financially unable to pay for safe, legal abortions or emergency contraceptives.Show LinksWatch the Evil Dead 2 trailer.Support WRRAP via our Scare-a-Thon donation link on Plumfund.Also: Blake is making a documentary! Yes, the author of Scored to Death Volume I & II is making a feature film with interviews from top horror composers. You can help make it happen by contributing to his Kickstarter campaign.Keep up with our rotating panel of guests from "Accademia Giallo"--plus more to be announced!Get professorial with Aaron Christensen at Horror101 with Dr. AC!Follow Jon down into Kitley's Krypt!And listen to his great podcast, Discover the Horror!Check out Bryan Martinez's YouTube show, The Giallo Room!And follow The Giallo Room on Instagram for your daily gialli fix!Buy Blake's "Scored to Death" Volume I and II on Amazon.…And catch up with classic episodes of his Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers podcast!Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ian and David conclude their sojourn in nearby Haddonfield, Illinois with a look at David Gordon Green's Halloween Ends!Four years after the events of Halloween Kills, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) has moved back home to write a book about her traumatic experiences with serial killer Michael Myers (James Jude Courtney). Her granddaughter/housemate, Allyson (Andi Matichak), starts a relationship with a troubled outcast named Corey (Rohan Campbell). The three of them grapple with a Haddonfield that hasn't been the same since Myers vanished without a trace...though the essence of his evil lingers as an emerging threat.In this spoiler-filled and merciless (but mostly fair) review, Ian and David break down the decisions that some call "bold" and others call "misguided", as Green and company deliver one of the most divisive and convoluted horror sequels since Friday the 13th: A New Beginning! They also propose an alternate version of the trilogy; question what reality the new movie takes place in; and decide whether or not it's time to stop celebrating Halloween!Show Links:Watch the Halloween Ends trailer.Follow David's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.Catch up with the guys' reviews of the first two films in David Gordon Green's HALLOWEEN trilogy:Halloween (2018)Halloween Kills (2021)As a bonus, check out Ian's interview with Halloween Kills star Anthony Michael Hall.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

At long last, IndieSeen returns! Ian welcomes back filmmaker/indie film guru Sujewa Ekanayake for an education in real-time, as they review Chetzemoka’s Curse and talk Dogme 95!Rick Schmidt's 2000 feature film centers on Marie (Maya Berthoud), a struggling hotel worker living in the Pacific Northwest whose ambitions and love life remain stuck in neutral. No, this isn't the setup of a cutesy rom-com; it's the doorway to a haunting portrait of damaged souls trapped within the legacy of a Native American curse (think Stephen King by way of Richard Linklater).Ian and Sujewa look at how the film conforms to (and breaks away from) the ten rules of Dogme 95, a bold filmmaking edict set forth by Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg as a challenge to artists everywhere. Ian ranks Chetzemoka’s Curse as one of the most unsettling and unique stealth-horror films he's ever seen, and Sujewa catches everyone up on all his moviemaking adventures from the last half-year!Timestamps:Intro / Sujewa Catch-up: 0:00 - 10:00History of Dogme 95: 10:01 - 25:31The Rules of Dogme 95: 25:32 - 28:13Chetzemoka’s Curse Discussion: 28:14 - 56:46Outro: 56:47 - 58:18Show Links:Rent or buy Chetzemoka’s Curse on Vimeo.Keep up with Chetzemoka’s Curse director Rick Schmidt's work on Vimeo....And order his book, Feature Filmmaking at Used-Car Prices on Amazon: Watch Amir Motlagh's 3 Worlds for free on Tubi (mentioned in the show).Watch the trailer for Mati Diop's Atlantics (mentioned in the show).Rent Sujewa's new movie, The Secret Society for Slow Romance.Find clips, making-of videos, and other cool info about Sujewa's upcoming film, The Secret Society for Slow Romance.Follow the production of Sujewa's Slow Romance sequel, Cosmic Disco Rene.Keep up with all of Sujewa's projects.Follow Sujewa on Twitter.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

This week, Kicking the Seat looks at horror movies that most people don't instantly think of as "horror movies"!Sofia Coppola's 1999 feature directorial debut, The Virgin Suicides, centers on a strict religious family living in the Michigan suburbs in the mid-1970s. The five teenage Lisbon sisters are the talk of their school: attractive, aloof, and totally mysterious, they inspire wild speculation in the adolescent boys who admire them from afar.In adapting Jeffrey Eugenides' novel, Coppola frames The Virgin Suicides as a haunted reminiscence by one of those boys, who recalls the tragedy that befell the Lisbons and the ripples it caused decades later. This spoilerific conversation finds Ian and Pat McDonald looking back on a film they hadn't revisited in nearly a quarter-century--and wondering just what kept them away. From the story's take on the so-called "male gaze"; to its kinship with a very popular, no-doubt-about-it horror movie; to the inclusion of a song that inspired Ian to create a new Film Rule, the guys delve into one of the most unique and insightful takes on the dark corners of nostalgia and the horrors of growing up.Show Links:Watch the Virgin Suicides trailer.Keep up with Pat at HollywoodChicago.com.The Criterion Collection recently released The Virgin Suicides on 4K UHD Blu-ray, which you can order here.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Scare-a-Thon 2022 is here! Join your favorite creature-feature critics for a ripping round-table review of Joel Schumacher's The Lost Boys!This 1987 vampire action flick sold a billion cans of hair spray, solidified the Two Coreys as pop icons, and made gods of shirtless saxophonists. It's also an incredibly entertaining and inventive entry into the undead bloodsucker genre! In this free-flowing discussion, Ian, AC, and Blake talk about what made The Lost Boys so groundbreaking and cool; how it carried on a legacy of vampire-movie conventions by reinventing them; and what sets it apart from most modern takes on creatures of the night.All this, plus tales of celebrity encounters, wild speculation about vampire anatomy, and a look at Blake's incredible new Kickstarter campaign--a feature-length documentary continuation of his Scored to Death books, in which he interviews the horror genre's top composers!We'll be going live every Friday throughout October with special anniversary discussions of classic horror films--all benefiting the Women's Reproductive Rights Assistance Project (WRRAP), a non-partisan, nonprofit organization assisting women who are financially unable to pay for safe, legal abortions or emergency contraceptives.Show LinksWatch the Lost Boys trailer.Support WRRAP via our Scare-a-Thon donation link on Plumfund.Also: Blake is making a documentary! Yes, the author of Scored to Death Volume I & II is making a feature film with interviews from top horror composers. You can help make it happen by contributing to his Kickstarter campaign.Keep up with our rotating panel of guests from "Accademia Giallo"--plus more to be announced!Get professorial with Aaron Christensen at Horror101 with Dr. AC!Follow Jon down into Kitley's Krypt!And listen to his great podcast, Discover the Horror!Check out Bryan Martinez's YouTube show, The Giallo Room!And follow The Giallo Room on Instagram for your daily gialli fix!Buy Blake's "Scored to Death" Volume I and II on Amazon.…And catch up with classic episodes of his Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers podcast!Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!