Every March feels like Christmas for classic film fans as television’s home for timeless movie fare, TCM, finds a fresh way to package its massive slate of Oscar-worthy films in the annual 31 Days of Oscar marathon.
How should it be organized? By decade? By award category? A to Z? For this mega-marathon’s 29th round, the 352 titles airing — all of them either a winner or nominee across Academy categories — are bundled under one of 55 genres.
The viewing joys begin on Wednesday, March 1 at daybreak with the category of “Family Ties,” led by Orson Welles’ masterful 1942 period piece about wealthy Midwesterners The Magnificent Ambersons. Six more kinfolk classics run throughout the day: James Dean and Richard Davalos in 1955’s sibling rivalry drama East of Eden at 9:30am/8:30c and Judy Garland’s frothy 1944 musical Meet Me in St. Louis at 11:30am/10:30c make for quite a double feature!
Primetime resets with “Adventure.” Fans of this year’s quest-filled Best Picture nominees Avatar: The Way of Water and Top Gun: Maverick are in for a treat at 8/7c with The Adventures of Robin Hood, the high-flying tale of Robin (Errol Flynn) wooing beautiful Maid Marian (Olivia de Havilland, above). It’s followed by Humphrey Bogart’s Best Actor performance in 1951’s The African Queen (10/9c).
The 2023 Oscar contenders go head-t0-head on Sunday, March 12 when the 2023 Academy Awards kick off at 8/7c on ABC. Up for Best Picture are the aforementioned Avatar and Top Gun sequels along with Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Fabelmans, All Quiet on the Western Front, The Banshees of Inisherin, Elvis, Tár, Triangle of Sadness, and Women Talking.
All of the above titles have hit streaming services by now. While you’re lounging out watching TCM’s 31 Days of Oscar marathon, check out where to stream the 2023 Oscar nominees here.
31 Days of Oscar Marathon, Wednesday, March 1, 6am/5c, TCM