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.
A single-location 911 call center nightmare. Jake Gyllenhaal plays a demoted cop who gets a frantic call from a kidnapped woman. Every twist comes through voice and silence. Claustrophobic and relentless.
Neo-noir action thriller. A poisoned assassin has 24 hours to find her killer in Tokyo’s neon underworld. Visceral fights, ticking clock, and a surprisingly emotional core. best thriller movies netflix
Anxiety as a movie. Adam Sandler is a jeweler and gambling addict who can’t stop making disastrous bets. Nonstop shouting, cross-cutting, and a final shot that rewires everything. A single-location 911 call center nightmare
Here’s a curated, text-only list of gripping thriller movies on Netflix right now — no filler, just tension: Claustrophobic and relentless
Scottish Highlands dread. Two friends accidentally shoot a boy while hunting. Their cover-up spirals into a paranoid nightmare where every local knows more than they say. Quiet, ruthless, unforgettable.
Legal thriller meets dark comedy. A court-appointed guardian cons elderly people out of their assets — until she picks the wrong “victim” who has mob ties. Sharp, nasty, and unpredictable.
Australian undercover thriller based on a true child abduction case. An operative befriends a suspect over months — but who’s deceiving whom? Slow-burn to a gut-punch finale.