Putting the Heat into Evil Dead Burn

I saw somebody describe the hotness of Evil Dead Burn's French director Sébastien Vanicek as "Travis Kelce but hot" and I thought that was so funny and spot-on it's how I shall describe him as well. (I was going to say "forever" but honestly I kind of hope that ten years from now I'll have forgotten the name "Travis Kelce.") Anyway my review of Evil Dead Burn dropped at Pajiba last Friday but if you missed it read it here. Mixed thoughts! Extremely mixed thoughts on this one. Still I think Vanicek is talented -- I thought that after I finally set aside my spider-willies long enough to watch his 2023 horror flick Infested, which is a creepy-crawly great time. And even more importantly he's hot! So we'll continue keeping track of his career. We're easy like that. 

Five Frames From ?

What movie is this?

Everything You Ever Need To Know About Life...

 ... you can learn from:

Jurassic Park (1993)

Dr. Alan Grant: Life found a way.

You'd think a person would reach a certain age, one where they've gone through enough of these to have an inkling that everyone dies and most of the people older than yourself who you worshipped as a kid, you're gonna have to say goodbye to them. But even with his openness about the cancer he'd been battling for years I wasn't prepared for my boyfriend to wake me up this morning with the news that Sam Neill had died. I'm sure I'd seen him in something before Jurassic Park -- I'd probably seen The Hunt For Red October; I doiubt I'd seen The Piano -- but he became, from the moment that movie opened, Dr. Grant to me. I actually have a vivid memory of not liking him having been cast in the role since I'd read the book and I'm sure the Dr. Grant that was swimming around in my hormonal 15-year-old head was hunkier. But the child-like (yes, Spielbergian) wonder under a faux-gruff exterior that he brought to the role was undeniable, and without it the movie wouldn't have worked. And it did work -- I went back and saw the movie twenty damn times in the theater, after all!

It took a long time for me to be able to see Neill as anything else -- and I'm sure, even though he more than anyone else in the franchise capitalized on the bank the role brought him, that single-role identification was a little harmful to his career -- but decades on when I finally got around to catching Andrzej Żuławski's Possession, well, if you've seen that movie you know it'll slap the spell off of anybody's face. I think I really only came to appreciate what a fine and versatile actor he was once that happened. So of course I'll find time to re-watch Jurassic Park for the ten billionth time this week but I'm gonna make space for The Piano, Dead Calm, In the Mouth of Madness, Hunt For the Wilderpeople, as well.

Thank you for everything. Sam Neill.

Good Morning, World

Happy Monday morning from an old photo (but previously unseen and unposted I do believe) of Russell Tovey in short-shorts in a room full of shelves. Shelves! Short shorts! Big ass calves! If it wasn't for his pup blocking the bulge this picture would have everything one needs to get through a Monday morning. Alas, we shall just have to thunder through on the rest. You can do it! (click to embiggen)

Melton's World

Well I started today by wishing one hot fella congrats on his Emmy nomination, I might as well end the day doing the same -- and this time for a performance I have actually seen! (Sorry, Colman.) Congrats to our boy Charles Melton for getting an extremely deserved nod for his hysterical turn in the second season of Beef -- I was happy to see that show get a few nominations; I really thought the general consensus (not shared by me) was that its second season was a downgrade. Personally I liked the second season even more than the first, mainly due to Charles' comedic brilliance (and sexual tension with Oscar Isaac) and the utter perfection that is Carey Mulligan every second she exists. Anyway I don't want to do any deep dive on the Emmy nominations because the Emmys fucking suck -- not one single nomination for anything Industry-related is basically an immediate disqualification for any meaningfulness with regards to their entire organization. But if Charles is happy...

...  we're happy for Charles. Anyway I had been hoping that he'd grace us with some more from his Milk Extravaganza of last week, but seeing as how generous he's been lately I won't complain. Not too loudly anyway. I've got these gifs from Beef on hand that I've not shared yet anyway. And just think -- his Nicolas Winding Refn movie isn't even out yet! That's in a couple of weeks and we'll have so so so much to say about it shortly, believe you me. (Yes indeed I have now seen it. I have now seen it!) It's actually opening Fantasia Fest in Montreal which, well I guess now's the time to share I'm going back to Montreal for that again this year, so stay tuned for lots of Fantasia coverage to come. Unbelievably that's... uhh. one week from today? Shit I haven't packed a thing yet. All that AND it's my birthday next week. When it rains milk from Charles Melton's lips it pours milk from Charles Melton's lips. As the saying goes. Okay I've rambled enough. Time for me to head off for my three day weekend. Keep your eyes peeled to Pajiba as I have a review going up tomorrow but otherwise y'all have a good weekend and you can get it started by hitting the jump for more Charles Melton gifs...

Everything You Ever Need To Know About Life...

 ... you can learn from:

The History of Sound (2025)

Lionel: I feel I've missed something. How to put this? It's not nostalgia, it's not grief. It's the... hardness of a fact that I should've stayed in Maine. Would I feel differently if we hadn't met? Would I feel now, that I had missed something? But we did meet. And what do I want now? I want the sound of my life, I think. What happens to it all, all the sounds released into the world, never captured? I want all of it. The history of sound.

I always feel bad for actors who've been tasked with speaking the title of the film -- how do you deliver it without it being distracting? It's kind of an impossible task and I think Chris Cooper -- who's celebrating his 75th birthday today, everybody send this treasure a happy one -- was smart to just lean into it since he wasn't just speaking the film's title, he was also delivering the film's final words. Yes the movie ends with its own title which should earn it a groan, but I find this entire timeline jump so moving thanks to Cooper's work that it doesn't. Not from me anyway. I love this movie so dearly. (Here is my review.) Have you gone back and watched it since its release? I think now, without all those annoying "awards bait" expectations crushing in on its slight frame, it breathes even more beautifully than before. It'll have a long, lovely shelf-life. What a beautiful heartbreaker.

Five Frames From ?

What movie is this?

Good Morning, World

It's a good time to be Colman Domingo -- he just got two Emmy nominations (for Euphoria and The Four Seasons), he's running around in Italy with his cute husband, he's Colman Domingo. Our man has reason to smile. I'm starting to think Colman here might end up being our first out Oscar winning actor? If Soderbergh's The Christophers had landed harder I'd be holding out hope for the seriously overdue Ian McKellen... but it didn't. (He is great in that movie though.) I am just praying Colman doesn't win this year for Michael -- no I haven't seen it, nor do I have any desire to see it, but come on. Awarding that pedo-celebrating nightmare would be a stain on what should be a celebration. But I suppose that's adding to his good mood -- that movie becoming a massive hit against all... odds, sanity, reason. Aww I didn't make to turn this post into bad thoughts. I am such a Debbie Downer. Sorry, Colman! Go back to your perfect life and ignore lil' ol' me...

You Can't Spell Messiah Without Mess

I know that calling it Dune Part Three will make it feel like a closed trilogy more but I really miss this thing being called Dune:Messiah -- it's just a more interesting title. Do I think that because it might irritate Christians? I'll never tell! (Yes I will -- of course that's the reason.) Anyway the trailer for Dune Whatever has dropped today and surely you've seen it elsewhere -- I just wanted, nay needed, to make that gif of Robert Pattinson so I figured I might as well post the damn thing. That said I am excited about this -- I liked both of the previous movies a lot, even if I maintain against the hype that Austin Butler was terrible in the second one. I have total faith that RPatz will make for a serious upgrade in the anti-Atreidas establishment. 

Dune Whatever (am I just calling it that now?) is out December 18th.

Make Like Ryan Phillippe And Blow

I'm not going to link to all of the posts I did a decade-plus ago whining about how badly I wanted the rumored Director's Cut of writer-director Mark Christopher's 1998 film about the whole Studio 54 thing titled 54 to happen, and then the news that it was happening circa 2015, and then how it happened -- needless to say my reactions were all very close to what's happening on Ryan Phillippe's face here in these gifs. I was excited! But then I don't know what happened -- a fucking decade happened and here it is 2026 and I never got around to watching the Director's Cut even though I owned the blu-ray of it. 

Shiny things! I moved on to the next shiny thing to whine and whinny about. Anyway this realization hit me yesterday when the fine folks at Vinegar Syndrome announced they're releasing a fancy deluxe 4K edition of the out-of-print Director's Cut (also including the original Theatrical Cut) -- you can pre-order that right here as I did, with a firm promise to myself and all you people in the world who frankly couldn't give a shit that I will watch it this time, I swear it. Oh and this post, while informational, is also out of self-interest -- I have now listed my unwatched blu-ray of the Director's Cut of this movie over on eBay for sale, if anybody wants to snatch that up. I actually added a lot onto eBay in the past week or so, so check that out and buy my shit, please. I am drowning in things! Ryan knows how I feel. Right, Ryan?

Today's Fanboy Delusion

Today I'd rather be...

... bucking between Miguel Ángel Silvestre's thighs. 

Lucky goddamned horse. (via)

Five Frames From ?

What movie is this?

Good Morning, World

Look at Alexander Ludwig shirtless in the mountains! Living the dream! Okay I'm not sure if it's his dream or my dream -- can we share it? Please? He was posting from one of my favorite vacation spots (the Dolemites in Northern Italy) so I think we should share it. (via) 

Whatcha Got Down There, Jake?

Heads up -- or rather heads down, like Jake there -- I've got multiple screenings tomorrow so I'm taking the day off. Both are movies that are not out yet -- one is a rewatch of something I've already seen and the other is one of my most anticipated movies of the year. If you follow me on Letterboxd this will be easy to figure out since I will log them (but not review them) when I watch them tomorrow. But anyway that is where I will be. Still if you need something more you can point your head downward like Jake there and you'll see there's plenty of shit to read below. Emphasis on shit obviously. Or just stare at the way that sweaty t-shirt clings to Jake -- whatever. It's not my business. See you Wednesday!

It Puts the Lotion on Its Skin

One of my favorite movies from this year's Sundance is hitting some theaters this upcoming weekend and I'm just now realizing I have not shared this information yet! The movie's called Night Nurse and it's a perverse little psycho-sexual thriller that feels like it's floating in a ketamine daze -- right up my alley then. I called it "deliciousness for sickos" in my review and as a self-proclaimed sicko myself (I'm not just the President, but I'm also a member) I think you should take my word. The movie's about a charismatic older gentleman in a retirement community who causes the nurses to fall under his predatory spell, and one in particular who goes right off the deep end -- anyway I don't think you should know much more about it but the trailer is below if you're so inclined. It's only hitting a couple of theaters in NYC and LA this weekend but click here and you can see if/when it will spread from there. That said it's a very small movie without any recognizable names so my guess is this'll be on VOD before you can say "rectal thermometer" ten times fast. Seek it out!

Josh Rivera Five Times

I missed the first batch of these Josh Rivera photos when they dropped with the interview at Cero magazine back in June, but thankfully the photographer also shared a couple of outtakes (the first two photos you see here) and those, for obvious reasons, caught my eye. How do photos like this become outtakes? Bad decision, Cero magazine! Bad decision. Anyway as hot as Josh was in Spielberg's West Side Story remake (watching that movie I could not fathom why Maria was ditching him for bland-ass Tony as played by Ansel) Josh really upped the heat next level for his role as Rocky in The Rocky Horror Picture Show opposite Luke Evans on Broadway which... well, I suppose anyone would work out a lot if one was going to play that half-naked sex-god role. I don't say this much but -- thank you, Broadway. Hit the jump for the rest...

Everything You Ever Need To Know About Life...

 ... you can learn from:

Sin City:A Dame to Kill For (2014)

Ava: What does it feel like? Dwight: What?

Ava: Murdering an innocent man. 

Just wanna know what it felt like. Must have been beautiful.

Dwight: What are you talking about innocence?

Ava: I knew I could count on you. 

Sex always made you stupid, ready to believe anything.

A happy birthday to our beloved Eva Green, who is hopefully recovering well and with no pain whatsoever after beingn injured on the set of the next season of Wednesday last week -- latest reports say thankfully no bones were broken when she fell off a horse while filming a scene and my god, the things actors go through for us. Anyway as middling as I have found Wednesday the show to be so far I will absolutely be tuning in now that Eva's joined the cast. She's one of those actresses that has never not eleveated whatever shit she's gracing with her presence -- which isn't to say she's made a lot of shit, but when she does she's always the best thing about it. Did any of you see the two French Three Musketeers movies that came out recently? I finally got around to them a couple of months ago and they were legitimately terrific and absolutely did right by her. She's somehow still so damn underappreciated! We here at MNPP HQ are huge fans who'll follow her anywhere. A queen. Feel better, queen!

Five Frames From ?

What movie is this?

Good Morning, World

There, a little get up and go for your 

Monday morning via Glen Powell. 

Stay Cool, Cats

I got approximately zero point zero zero things accomplished today but I think I can be forgiven, as my brain liquified somewhere around 9am on the subway platform, leaking down into some rat's nest to never be seen nor heard from again. From here on out this weekend will be an extraordinary cancellation of any activity that moves me off the couch -- nothing but air conditioning and probably a Pedro Almodóvar marathon as I find myself very much in the mood for that. The heat makes me think of Pedro! I can't imagine why. 

Whenever it gets hot I find myself wanting to watch Pedro Almodóvar movies and I've been feeling a real hankering to re-watch his past decade's worth of beauties and marvels, many of which I've only seen once -- perhaps this weekend a little binge!

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— Jason Adams (@jamnpp.bsky.social) July 1, 2026 at 11:25 AM

Anyway everyone stay safe out there in this abysmal swelter -- do nothing more than lounging about like fancy-boy Josh O'Connor there in his bedazzled Dior blouse being pretty, please. Click here for more of that new campaign (thx Mac) which also includes fancy-boy Lakeith Stanfield lounging about sexily! I do wish they'd gotten Josh & Lakeith to lounge around with / on top of one another. Reenact some Maurice for us, you two. I'd buy a spangled blouse for that.