The wait is almost over, cinema freaks: the Oscars is upon us yet again. And while the 2016 Academy Awards have already been marked with controversy (as well as a significant boycott), there's no question that millions of movie fans will once again tune in to watch which whether their favorite movies from the past year will receive the accolades they deserve.
But until then, there's still an entire weekend of waiting to do and so many empty hours of potential film-watching to fill. If you're a diehard movie buff (or if Netflix's Fuller House, like many a critic, doesn't appeal to you), what's a person trying to get their Oscar pregame on supposed to do?
Well, it's a good thing we have you covered: we've compiled a list of the best Oscar-winning performances and movies for you to feast your eyes on, giving you plenty of stuff to entertain yourself with before Sunday evening rolls around. Let's get started.
Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds, 2009)
The role that brought Austrian actor Christoph Waltz international fame might still be his most indelible antagonists of the century so far. His portrayal of SS officer Hans Landa, "The Jew Hunter, " in the Quentin Tarantino revenge fantasy Inglourious Basterds incorporates an entire spectrum of villainy, from the banality of evil in the everyman typified in that time period, to a maniacal, grinning puppeteer. Even if this is the role that typecast Waltz forever as the bad guy, would you really have it any other way?
Robin Williams (Good Will Hunting, 1997)
Even if Ben Affleck shall now be forever known as Batfleck, he once wrote a movie with Matt Damon (or Jason Bourne, if you prefer) about a math savant named Will from Boston's working class that one the writing duo an Oscar for best original screenplay. It also starred Robin Williams as Dr. Sean Maguire, a widowed psychology professor that becomes Will's mentor. Each of his monologues are soaked in a bittersweet truth that will make you either cry, go see about a girl, or root for a losing team like the Red Sox for the sheer hope of it all - or maybe do all three.
Best Supporting Actress
Whoopi Goldberg (Ghost, 1990)
Before Whoopi Goldberg yelled loudly at Elisabeth Hasselback on The View for a living, she was a pretty accomplished actress. Her nomination for best supporting actress in the fantasy rom-com Ghost wasn't her first - she had already garnered one for her break out role as Celie in The Color Purple - but her turn as a fake psychic who can actually hear ghosts (namely, Patrick Swayze as Sam) was, to quote New York Times critic Janet Maslin's review, "one of those rare occasions on which the uncategorizable Ms. Goldberg has found a film role that really suits her, and she makes the most of it." As hilarious as she is soul-eyed, it almost makes you wish Whoopi was off of the talk show host couch and back in the pictures.
