8. Rocky
The titular character going toe-to-toe with Apollo Creed for 15 rounds is nothing compared to Sly Stallone's masterpiece knocking out Taxi Driver, Network, All the President's Men and Bound for Glory at the Oscars. Stallone was unknown back in 76 and the film was made on a minuscule budget and it was facing off against the might of Martin Scorsese, Sidney Lumet and Ingmar Bergman, but it somehow did it. Of course, unlike the character Rocky, it didn't really deserve to win it. Critics and audiences alike have grown more and more snobbish over Rocky. It's a very good film and still Stallone's best, but better than Taxi Driver or Network? No sir. The Academy loves an underdog story, but they really got ahead of themselves this time, snubbing both Scorsese and Lumet's masterpieces. Scorsese and Lumet are both known for their shortcomings at the awards ceremony and 1976 sadly proved no different. Despite its small scale, Rocky was the highest grossing picture of 1976, and the Academy surely wanted cap off the iconic underdog story with a host of statuettes.