15 Oscar-Baiting Films That Hilariously Failed To Win

6. War Horse

War Horse is far from a terrible film, but it was clear from the moment the first trailer dropped that it was going to be the epitome of Oscar bait. With its visual splendour, epic tone and emphasis on an emotional story while Steven Spielberg directs, there was no question that War Horse would be in the Oscar conversation. The final product was more impressive as a technical feat than as a piece of storytelling, and though it delivered the basic goods, it totally smacked of a film trying oh-so-hard to win Oscars, and that may in part explain why it ultimately got 6 nominations without a single win. One of the more surprising omissions was Steven Spielberg not being nominated for Best Director, given the overall stylistic elegance of the piece, though War Horse did still scoop a Best Picture nod, alongside nominations for Cinematography, Score, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing and Art Direction. The lack of any notices for acting, writing and direction generally make the case clear: this is a technically accomplished movie that doesn't quite cut it in the narrative department.