For their 224th episode, two paddle-slapped critics, two ping ball-chasing dads, and two wildly arrogant teachers, Will Johnson and Don Shanahan, put a little effort in the 2025-2026 awards season with an episode on Josh Safdie's latest heart palpatation movie, Marty Supreme, starring Best Actor frontrunner Timothee Chalamet. Contrary to the overflowing critical praise following this movie, our hosts are actually quite split on this one. Find out who's the lover and who's the hater.
Read MoreFor their 223rd episode, two gun-totting critics, two bath-soaked dads, and two too-old-for-this teachers, Will Johnson and Don Shanahan, come out of the Christmas season with a special gift shared from them to all of you. They are in the camp that considers Lethal Weapon a Christmas movie. Well, this year, the podcast bestows to you a special episode that covers all four films of the Lethal Weapon series. They cover their heroes, villains, explosions, gags, and moments from what has become an action movie time capsule that will never be made the same way again.
Read MoreFor their 222nd episode, two Catholic-bred critics, two suspicious dads, and two investigative teachers, Will Johnson and Don Shanahan, let Netflix tell them what to love and enjoy for one week. Hopping to something current, our hosts watched and compared their examinations for Wake Up Dean Man, the latest whodunit from Rian Johnson, who has very quickly mastered the murder mystery genre. Get a taste of this comfort food murder mayhem.
Read MoreContinuing to plod through “awards season,” Ian Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast and YouTube channel circled Bradley Cooper’s newest directorial effort, Is This Thing On?. The dramedy follows a separated married couple played by Will Arnett and Laura Dern as they find new outlets while single, including standup comedy.
Read MoreDiving into the physical media front, Ian Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast and YouTube channel sought to cover Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 classic Boogie Nights. Several critics, including myself and Ian, received the new 4K-UHD disc edition of the film and took that opportunity to talk as cleanly as possible for YouTube censors, PTA’s ins-and-outs of the 1970s and 1980s porn scene of southern California.
Read MoreEvery week, Ian Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast and YouTube channel is looking for something like that, and he sure found one this week, just in time for Christmas. The movie in question is the crowd-pleasing, toe-tapping, and heart-moving Song Sung Blue, the musical biopic—not of Neil Diamond—but of a Wisconsin-based Neil Diamond tribute band starring Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson.
Read MoreFor their 221st episode, two football fan critics, two sobbing dads, and two motivated teachers, Will Johnson and Don Shanahan, enjoy a little corner of football while the NFL season is chugging towards the playoffs. The two venture in the realm of a classic TV movie with Brian's Song, starring James Caan and Billy Dee Williams. Both of our hosts have personal connections to the college it was filmed at, which the Chicago Bears used to call their training camp home for decades. Come learn more and stay for the mutual love and respect that fun movies encapsulate. Enjoy our podcast!
Read MoreFor their 220th episode, two bare-chested critics, two archeologist dads, and two whip-cracking teachers, Will Johnson and Don Shanahan, take an expedition back to the great cinematic and cultural milestone year of 1984 to cover the sequel Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Everyone involved, from filmmakers Steven Spielberg and George Lucas to the game cast of Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, and Ke Huy Quan. Come eat all the weird palace foods with us and stay for the mutual love and respect that fun movies encapsulate. Enjoy our podcast!
Read MoreIan Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast and YouTube channel was among the Chicago press who got the chance to see James Cameron’s Avatar: Fire and Ash multiple weeks early. Since he (and the rest of us for that matter) didn’t want to completely forget a completely forgettable movie, Ian assembled “Earth’s Mightiest Critics” to pre-record a “live” roundtable for the movie’s big release this weekend. Enjoy Ian, myself, Jeff York of The Establishing Shot, Mike Crowley of You’ll Probably Agree, and Cati Glidewell of The Blonde in Front talking about all things ashy and blue.
Read MoreIan Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast and YouTube channel kept finding his movie spins on Netflix this month with the awards season in full swing. Following up Train Dreams, he stepped into the Hollywood-adoring spotlight of Jay Kelly, the comedy on aged stardom from Marriage Story director Noah Baumbach. Thanks to some critic perks, I have been lucky to chase a few of the stars of Jay Kelly at a Netflix press junket last month. I bring those tales and my own fandom to Ian’s channel.
Read MoreFor their 219th episode, two ensign film critics, two battle-tested dads, and two admiral-ranked teachers, Will Johnson and Don Shanahan, know damn well that the needs of the many outweigh the need of the few. They put their show through their own Kobayashi Maru because disliking the 1982 classic Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is a no-win situation to anyone who tries. That means our hosts passed with flying colors and put forth a great show of celebration that could regrow and podcast-listening ear like a Genesis missle.
Read MoreFor their 218th episode, two slashed film critics, two dream-trapped dads, and two meta teachers, Will Johnson and Don Shanahan, circle back a little to spooky movie season as Don finally dips his toes into Wes Craven's Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. To bring in the first-timer, Will suggested taking a look at Wes Craven's bookends of the 1984 original and his heavily self-aware sequel, 1994's Wes Craven's New Nightmare. This gave our guys quite the slices of commentary and reaction for a bloody good episode.
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