Tom's Top 3: April 29, 2025
Lord Forgive Me, For I Have Sinned
Hi everyone! Welcome to this week’s installment of Tom’s Top 3 Tuesdays, where I highlight three pieces of content (Podcasts/Shows/Songs/Articles/etc.) that I found interesting or noteworthy from the prior week.
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[Movie] Warner Bros. - Sinners
Ever since I saw the first trailer for this movie, I knew I was going to love it. But with my recent travel, coupled with the fact that its popularity (and subsequent controversy) has made finding an IMAX showing with open seats nearly impossible, I wasn’t able to see the film until this week.
If you know me, you know I’m not a fan of scary movies. I’m the guy that puts one hand in front of my face, peering through my fingers, bracing for a jump scare.
Even though this movie has its scary moments, it’s way more than just another vampire movie. If you’re at all interested, I highly suggest checking it out (on the big screen of course).
[Podcast] The Big Picture - ‘Sinners’ Is for the Sickos, the Cinephiles and You, with Ryan Coogler
I feel like my new favorite pastime is immediately following up a movie with it’s accompanying Big Picture episode.
This episode is the perfect blend of summary (what the f*ck did I just watch again?) and film criticism (or in this case, film appreciation). It gave me the feeling of getting out of the theater and spending the rest of the afternoon frantically rehashing the movie with friends, as if we would completely forget every plot point or observation if we didn’t blurt it out as quickly as possible.
The episode also ends with a very interesting interview of the brilliant director, Ryan Coogler, who also directed the Black Panther and Creed franchises (all starring Michael B. Jordan). He confessed that he had a ton of urgency with getting this movie together, because he realized that many of his frequent collaborators were starting families and getting approached with their own big opportunities.
He also discussed the benefits and difficulties of filming with analog cameras, including IMAX. When shooting with film, the cameras were either super loud or extremely heavy. While this certainly had its drawbacks, Coogler explained how it actually heightened the focus of the actors, because they audibly knew they were on the clock and needed to move quickly to get the shot and not waste film.
[YouTube] Kodak - Aspect Ratios with Sinners Director Ryan Coogler
Super cool deep dive into film types and aspect ratios from the man himself, Ryan Coogler. I had definitely heard all of these terms tossed around throughout the years, but I never really knew what all the specs meant until watching this video.
It was incredible to learn that Sinners was shot with two cameras, an Ultra Panavision 70 and IMAX, and that this is actually the first time where they have combined the two film formats. That means, at certain points in the film, the aspect ratio will actually transition between the wide screen Ultra Panavision format and the larger IMAX format.
I didn’t watch this YouTube video before seeing the movie, so when I noticed the aspect ratio changing during the movie, I thought my mind was playing tricks on me.
That wraps up this edition of Tom’s Top 3 Tuesdays. If you made it to this point, please drop a 1️⃣, 2️⃣, or 3️⃣ in the comments to let me know what you found most interesting/useful. And as always, please like and consider sharing with a friend who you think would enjoy! I’ll be back next week. ✌️