Tom's Top 3: June 10, 2025
Saving Private Wilhelm
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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[YouTube] In Depth Cine - 5 Unusual Aspect Ratios
Today, the most common aspect ratios are either Flat (1.85:1) or Scope (2.4:1). However, digital cameras and editing software make it possible for the filmmaker to use the one that best suits the story.
The aspect ratio can be manipulated to show more or less of the surroundings, evoke a particular mood/feeling, or represent a specific time period. This video highlights five less common aspect ratios, and explains how each is a product of the time and place in which it was popularized.
These options include: Univisium (2:1), Ultra Panavision 70 (2.76:1) Fullscreen (1.33:1), Euro widescreen (1.66:1), and IMAX (1.43:1 or 1.9:1). If you’ve been locked in on this newsletter, you may remember that a personal favorite, Sinners, was shot on both Ultra Panavision 70 (one of only ten films ever shot this way) and IMAX.
[YouTube] Mixed Signals - The most famous scream of all time
I’m not sure when I first heard the words “Wilhelm Scream,” but I definitely first clocked the iconic sound bite from binging Star Wars and Indiana Jones as a kid.
Turns out, it’s one of the best inside jokes of all time.
I had never asked myself about its origin. While it’s named after Private Wilhelm from 1953’s The Charge at Feather River, the original scream was long assumed to be voiced by Sheb Wooley in Distant Drums. The recording was lost to time, that is until it was discovered in the USC film archives in 2023.
So that solved the mystery on who owns the scream, but why did it become so popular?
Funny enough, Ben Burtt (famous sound designer of the original Star Wars), stumbled upon this sound clip while in film school and decided it would be fun to sneak it into his movies, along with his other buddies. In the process, they may have inadvertently created the first film Easter Egg, which sound designers still use today.
[YouTube] IGN - The Entire Mission: Impossible Franchise Recap
I recently “chose to accept” the challenge of watching all of the Mission: Impossible movies in order before the release of MI8. I think I had seen the original 1996 film many years ago, but I have not kept up with the series.
Although I don’t regret it, man what an absolute slog that was.
A cumulative 18 hours and 21 minutes of runtime later, and I can now say I’ve seen the entire series.
One downside of binging 8 movies is that they all start to jumble together. I found this video helpful in reminding me what the f*ck happened in each of the first 7 movies. If you are excited about seeing The Final Reckoning, or you just need a refresher, start here.
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. ✌️