As the Oscar hype fades for another year the winners (and some of the stronger contenders) begin to reap the rewards of being members of the exclusive Oscar winning group.  A few weeks back I talked about the benefits of winning an Oscar: fame, fortune and profits.

OK people, clear out the MySky and make some room - here are a few of the must-see films screening this week as part of our Rialto Oscar’s Collection.

I know it’s parochial but big-ups to Bret McKenzie for taking home a glorious golden Oscar statue on Sunday evening for his muppet/man identity disorder song Man or Muppet. There were only two nominees in the best original song category this year, but it went to the right guy - I think the song is brilliant, so do my 5-year-old son and mother, it’s a cross generational gem!

I’m not sure where to start when writing about Rialto Channel in March; there’s no doubt we’re having our own Academy Awards party. The Rialto Oscar’s Collection this month features an assortment of winners and nominees from last years Academy Awards. For the first time on New Zealand television you’ll be able to enjoy the most celebrated must-see films of 2011, including The Kings Speech, Inside Job, In a Better World, Winter’s Bone and The Kids Are Alright. 

The winners of the 84^th Academy Awards will be announced live in Los Angeles on Sunday 26^th February (Monday afternoon our time). It doesn’t matter what or who you read, the general consensus is this year Hollywood has gone all gooey for the silent black and white French film The Artist. Only Harvey Weinstein could pull off a Best Picture win for a foreign silent film - if he does, it will be the first time a silent film has won an Oscar since 1929.

Love and Other Impossible Pursuits is a brilliant title for a movie; enough in itself to pique my interest, and it screens this Saturday 25^th February at 8.30pm. Director and screenwriter Don Roos can’t take credit for the intriguing title of this story about life, loss and family; it’s based on a novel by author Ayelet Waldman. Interestingly, the film was released in the States under the rather more bland moniker The Other Woman.

Natalie Portman stars and is credited as an Executive Producer on this film, and puts her heart and soul into portraying Emilia, a young lawyer who falls for a married Senior Partner (Scott Cohen), and whose life takes an unexpected turn just as she seemingly gets everything she wants.

The British Academy of Film and Television held their Orange British Academy Film Awards on Sunday evening, and once again silence was golden as The Artist scooped seven awards, including best film, best director, best original screenplay (interesting choice!), original music, best costume design and best cinematography.

There will be no room on director Michel Hazanavicius’ mantle piece for an Oscar at this rate; so he’ll have to send a few statues to the pool room as I can’t imagine him leaving the Oscar’s empty handed now.

In order to remind us that she can do more than just stare wistfully at vampires and werewolves, Kristen Stewart has been using her downtime between shooting the drawn out Twilight Saga to shoot a series of independent films.

A while back when discussing the film Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story staring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon I also mentioned the latest movie they’ve done together, the hilariously funny road trip The Trip.

The structure of the film is quite repetitive, as they drive from restaurant to restaurant, but there’s a reason for that; this documentary-like film started out as a BBC2 6-part television series. This film plays out much better in its original format, and that’s how Rialto Channel will be screening The Trip, beginning with the first 2 episodes on Monday 13^th February at 8.30pm.

Sarah’s Key (Saturday 11^th February, 8.30pm) was one of my favourite films of 2011, so even if you’ve read and loved the book, by Tatiana de Rosnay’s and a New York Times best seller, this moving and absorbing film should be on your must-see list.