11 Directors Who Won Oscars For Completely The Wrong Movie

8. Robert Zemeckis

Won For... Forrest Gump

Should Have Won For... Back To The Future

Some might think that Robert Zemeckis most worthy chance of a Best Film nod would be Cast Away, and it would definitely have been a more worthy winner than Forrest Gump, but really, Back To The Future is the director's magnum opus and it deserved the win. Even though there was no way in the world it would ever have been nominated.

As a deeply populist movie, it would have been overlooked by the Academy every single year, which is plainly unfair. It's not a popular movie because of any cynical ploy or manipulation (which some Oscar winners actually are), it's popular because it is a perfect entertainment experience. And it is one of the best examples of the best directing being invisible.

If you look hard enough, you see Zemeckis' skill in the tone of the performances (all of which, down to Crispin Glover) are excellent, in the way the wonderfully convincing period sets are framed, and how the music - a character in itself in this movie - impacts the emotional messages. It's no throwaway achievement, and it's far better than the cloying sweetness of Gump.

Hell, even Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a better shout for Best Picture than Gump.