10 Times The Oscars Recognized 'Cool' Movies

Notable Nominations: Best Director, Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor.

If fans ran the Oscars, Star Wars would have won just about every award under the sun. Few films are more beloved than those of George Lucas' original trilogy of this space opera.

We may take these films for granted now, but in 1977, when A New Hope was released, this was like nothing moviegoers had ever seen before. The effects were groundbreaking, the characters were unique and unforgettable and the epic scope of it all was unparalleled.

The film became the biggest event in movie history, spawned countless imitators and, of course, equally successful sequels. But despite all the fanboy obsession and the box office records, it was still a movie with laser swords, furry monsters and a "Death Star", so how much love could it possibly get from the Academy? A surprising amount actually.

The film was nominated for 11 Oscars, and while a lot of those were made up of technical awards, it was also nominated Best Original Screenplay, Best Director and Best Picture. Perhaps the most surprising nomination was for Alec Guiness as Best Supporting Actor. Ironically, by all accounts, he hated his Star Wars experience and thought it was a big silly kids movie. Maybe the nomination changed his mind just a little.