Kicking the Seat

What better way to start the weekend than by watching me react to comments that could have been handled with a few deft keystrokes? In this week's response roundup, I draw more attention to one of my new favorite directors; take some film recommendations under advisement, and defend an apparently indefensible disdain for The Book of Boba Fett!If you've got a burning question, criticism, or idea that you'd like me to answer on this series, just leave a comment on any video here at the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel, the Kicking the Seat Facebook fan page, or any podcast/written review at kickseat.com!Please keep things smart and civil, and know that you'll get honest answers balanced with equal parts sincerity and snark!Show Links:Check out the shows that inspired all this lucid/ludicrous feedback!IndieSeen w/ Onur TukelSon of Hammerland: The Vampire Lovers (1970)The Boba Fett Book Club: Chapter 5 Round Table ReviewSubscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

We kick off 2022 with a lurid and oh-so-LIVE "Sunday School" edition of "Accademia Giallo"!In Sergio Martino's 1973 thriller, Torso, a string of appalling lust murders shocks the University of Perugia as a sadistic serial killer strangles beautiful college girls with a red and black scarf.Happy New Year!!!From inventive twists and character dynamics to an eerily effective you-are-there atmosphere throughout, the guys raise a bottle of J&B to one of the genre's finest (and most influential) entries!"Accademia Giallo" is Kicking the Seat's monthly deep dive into Italian Horror's "giallo" sub-genre. And this ain't no private school, either: the chat is open to everyone who wants to chime in about the movie and all things giallo!Show LinksWatch the Torso trailer.Read AC's Torso review at Horror 101 w/ Dr. AC! Follow Jon down into Kitley's Krypt!And listen to Jon's great new 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!Catch up on past lessons with our "Accademia Giallo" YouTube Playlist!Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

This tribute to the late Sidney Poitier isn't just a review of The Defiant Ones, it's the soft launch of a new 2022 series in which Ian and David will explore the films and legacy of one of our greatest, most influential performers.Stanley Kramer's 1958 drama centers on two convicts who escape from a prison-transport accident. Poitier and Tony Curtis star as Cullen and Joker, respectively, and the racial tensions between them are heightened by the fact that they're chained together at the wrist.Watch as the guys talk about the film as an unlikely noir; adjust their modern-day viewing lenses to gain a greater appreciation for the movie's significance; and lay the groundwork for what is sure to be a very enlightening year.Plus: A Sidney Poitier impression that might just signal the end of this podcast!Show Links:Watch the Defiant Ones trailer.Follow David's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Just when you thought it was safe to leave "Hammerland", Ian and Aaron return to the murky meadows of gothic greatness with "Son of Hammerland"!In 2021 the guys examined all of the Dracula and Frankenstein movies from Hammer Films. This year they'll explore the "off-brand" eerieness of the studio's other fright flicks...beginning with Roy Ward Baker's transformative exploitation thriller, The Vampire Lovers!Ingrid Pitt stars as a centuries-old lesbian vampiress whose thirst for blood is curtailed when she meets the beautiful and virginal Emma (Madeline Smith). Though filled with familiar genre conventions, this movie kicks open the coffin to more explicit violence and nudity, which Hammer hoped would make it competitive in the new decade.Watch as Ian and Aaron debate the effectiveness of this move, and one of them reveals a surprising (if inconsistent) stance on lurid displays of flesh!Show Links:Watch the Vampire Lovers trailer.Buy the new Vampire Lovers Collector's Edition Blu-ray from Shout! Factory.Watch the latest episode of "Featured Extras", in which Ian and Aaron dig into Shout! Factor's new Vampire Lovers Blu-ray!Check out Aaron's written review of the Vampire Lovers Blu-ray.Listen to Ian and Aaron discuss 1974's Vampyres (mentioned in the show).Catch up with the guys' original journey into darkness with our "Hammerland" playlist!Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ian and Sujewa blow open 2022 with indie filmmaker extraordinaire, Onur Tukel!In this free-flowing overview of the manic/prolific writer/director's career, the guys touch on Onur's moviemaking roots; his evolution from slacker walkie-talkies like Richard’s Wedding to ambitious existential dramedies with bona fide special effects (like 2021's one-two punch of Scenes From an Empty Church and That Cold Dead Look in Your Eyes); and his personal struggle with learning to curb his less-than-professional tendencies.It's a revealing look at one of today's most vital and criminally overlooked artists--and we barely scratch the surface!Show Links:Keep up with all things Onur at his website, Simian Nation!Stream, rent or own the movies discussed in this episode (there's not a dud in the bunch)!Scenes From an Empty Church (2021)That Cold Dead Look in Your Eyes (2021)Black Magic for White Boys (2021)The Misogynists (2017)Catfight (2016)Abby Singer/Songwriter (2015)Summer of Blood (2014)Richard’s Wedding (2012)Find clips, making-of videos, and other cool info about Sujewa's upcoming film, The Secret Society for Slow Romance.Keep up with all of Sujewa's projects.Follow Sujewa on Twitter.As a surprise bonus, Sujewa spoke with Onur after this episode, filmmaker-to-filmmker. Check it out!Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

You write, I reply! Yes, it's time for another dive into the virtual mailbag--this time covering special features, play buttons, and 2021's most over-hyped western!If you've got a burning question, criticism, or idea that you'd like me to answer on this series, just leave a comment on any video here at the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel or any podcast/written review at kickseat.com!Please keep things smart and civil, and know that you'll get honest answers balanced with equal parts sincerity and snark!Show Links:Check out the shows that inspired all this lucid/ludicrous feedback!Don’t Read the Comments! 12/22/21400th Subscriber VideoScream (2022) Movie ReviewThe Power of the Dog Movie Review ReviewThe Boba Fett Book Club: Chapter 4 Round Table ReviewFeatured Extras: Dune (2022)Dune (2022) video from Vanity Fair (referenced in the show): Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ian and David look at the latest (and last?) entry in a once groundbreaking meta-horror series and ask if it will become anyone's favorite scary movie.Show Links:Watch the Scream (2022) trailer.Follow David's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.Catch up with Ian's written reviews of the Scream franchise:Scream (1996)Scream 2Scream 3Scream 4Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ian talks with director Luis Prieto about his latest thriller, Shattered!When a young, recently divorced tech millionaire (Cameron Monaghan) suffers a debilitating injury, he hires the woman (Lilly Krug) with whom he'd had a hot-and-heavy one-night-stand to be his live-in nurse. This doesn't go well, and Shattered quickly becomes a disturbing, sexy, and downright bonkers update of Stephen King's Misery.In this spoiler-free conversation, Prieto talks about staying out of Misery's shadow; John Malkovich's instantly iconic wardrobe; and the surprising story behind a Picasso subplot! Shattered is now playing in select theatres and is available On Demand.Show Links:Watch the Shattered trailer.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

A New Year brings a new batch of comments! Watch as Ian once again rejects sound advice and responds to viewer mail.Show Links:Check out the shows that inspired all this lucid/ludicrous feedback!West Side Story (2021)White ChristmasCool as IceWatermelon ManOnwardThe Legend of the 7 Golden VampiresThe Book of Boba FettAnd check out Ian's recent appearance on the 90 Under 90 podcast, in which he looks back at The Aristocrats with the Eden Brothers (referenced in the show).Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!

Ian and David court disaster with their review of Adam McKay's extinction-level satire, Don’t Look Up!Two scientists (Jennifer Lawrence and Leonardo DiCaprio) discover a planet-ending comet is headed toward Earth, but the President of the United States (Meryl Streep) brushes off their dire warnings. This leads to high-profile media meltdowns, the merging of science and entertainment, and global skepticism about whether or not the threat is real.Or, as we call it in the biz, "pure escapism"!The guys break open the fiery controversies surrounding the film, exploring what McKay and company get right (contrary to popular opinion); what goes too far into the cartoonish extremes of parody; and why comparisons to gold-standard satires like Dr. Strangelove and Network aren't (completely) off the mark.Don’t Look Up is now streaming exclusively on Netflix.Show Links:Watch the Don’t Look Up trailer.Read the Gizmodo article on Don’t Look Up referenced in the show.Read Michael Phillips' Don’t Look Up commentary in the Chicago Tribune.Listen to Ian and David discuss Adam McKay's previous film, Vice (2018).Read Ian's 2015 review of McKay's The Big Short.Follow David's film criticism at Keeping It Reel.Subscribe to, like, and comment on the Kicking the Seat YouTube channel!