8. Sin City (2005)
Sin City, Robert Rodriguez' faithful adaptation of the Frank Miller comic series is a film ahead of its time, both in the visual treatment of the story, and in the minds of the Academy. Rodriguez has always been a supporter of shooting films digitally, even in the technical revolution's infancy. He took the new format to a whole different level with Sin City, creating a universe that came off the screen like few movies can achieve. Shooting on digital cameras and relying primarily on green screen CGI to pull off the black and white neo-noir look he was attempting, Rodriguez and the resounding success of Sin City paved the way for how much more imaginative a film-maker can be with the proper tools. In 2005, digital film-making in Hollywood was still a taboo subject, and was not taken serious enough by the elitists as an "art form". Sin City was not recognized by the Academy for its artistic endeavors, surely a travesty that the groundbreaking Cinematography, Art-Set Decoration or Visual Effects were not honored with nominations. Adding to the shame of the Academy, the brilliant performance from Mickey Rourke as the iron-jawed hero of the film, Marv was also criminally overlooked for a Best Supporting Actor nomination. 3 years later, Slumdog Millionare, a film shot entirely digitally won 8 Oscars including Best Picture and Cinematography, thus ushering in the digital boom as accepted art, but Sin City was the film that lit that spark.