Best Actress in a Supporting Role 1994: Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction

Uma Thurman received her only Oscar nomination to date for her performance as Mia Wallace in Pulp Fiction.

Pulp Fiction is a brilliant movie about four intertwined stories involving two hit men, a boxer, a gangster's wife and two diner bandits. It's an absolutely amazing film that doesn't have a single weak link: Tarantino's style makes the story absolutely unique and captivating from the very beginning yet it never overwhelms it; the screenplay is one of the best ever written; and the cast is terrific, with every single actor doing a solid job even with the tiniest part. It's quite simply a masterpiece.

The first time I saw Pulp Fiction, I have to admit I found Uma Thurman's performance a little bit overrated. I thought she gave a good, charismatic turn and I understood why the performance was so iconic but I never felt she gave the amazing performance many people claimed she did. My main reservation about her performance was not really about her acting, but on the limitations of the role itself, which I felt was a little one-dimensional. Rewatching the movie two years later, I've grown to appreciate this performance much more: the first time I felt the writing of the character was limited, but now I actually think it's terrific - the screenplay leaves a lot of room for interpretation and there is actually a great depth in the character that might not be obvious but that impressed me incredibly this time around. And Thurman nails every single aspect of the character, making every second of her screen-time count. 

Thurman plays Mia, the wife of the gangster Marsellus Wallace: her husband asks hit man Vincent Vega (John Travolta) to take her for an evening out while he is out of town. In her first scene, we see Mia from behind while she snorts cocaine, and then we see a shot of her feet as she utters "Let's go": it's certainly a memorable and original entrance for the character that perfectly establishes the tone for the rest of her performance that is at all times extremely unique and bizzarre in the best way possible. One key element of Thurman's performance is her chemistry with Travolta: if the chemistry had not worked, her entire performance would have collapsed. Thankfully, both actors are an absolute thrill to watch on-screen and their performances work together exceptionally well. Their relationship is so wonderful because it's so uncoventional - it's not what one would call friendship but rather a mutual understanding of each other's feelings and sensation and both actors convey this with amazing skill and subtlety. Whether they are talking about utter banalities or almost philosophical matters, you can't take your eyes off them because they are so compelling and captivating to watch. Thurman herself makes Mia an unforgettable character: the style of her performance works wonderfully within Tarantino's vision but just like the movie itself Thurman never lets the style overwhelm the substance. At first, Thurman makes for a very alluring and mysterious presence but as the dinner goes on she reveals some poignant layers about Mia's personality: there's an otherworldly quality about her performance that makes it utterly charismatic but that also creates a certain distance between her and the other cast members, giving a sense of loneliness and melancholy that makes the character all the more remarkable. I also found Thurman to be quite touching as Mia speaks about the pilot of a TV series that wasn't picked up in which she starred: in that moment she subtly suggests Mia's underlying boredom and unsatisfaction with her life and the hint of bitterness in her voice is extremely haunting. Thurman never asks for the viewer's sympathy, though, and she is not afraid of making Mia look a bit vain and shallow - she never oversimplifies the character one way or another, and therefore makes her surprisingly three-dimensional. And past that, I found her performance to be exceptionally funny at times and her line-delivery of "I said goddamn, goddamn! Goddamn..." as she "powders her nose" as she puts it is absolutely hilarious. And who can forget the dancing scene with Travolta? Absolute magic.

In the second half of her performance, after Mia mistakes heroine for cocaine, snorts it and overdoses, Thurman technically doesn't have to do all that much as she is passed out for most of the time but she still deserves quite a lot of credit for the overdose scene as she portrays it with terrifying realism. And the moment in which she finally wakes up after being given a shot of adrenaline through the heart is pitch-perfect thanks to Thurman's excellent acting. What makes me truly love her performance is actually her final scene with Travolta: Mia's glamour is completely gone and Thurman shows her for the pathetic, broken mess she is. I found Thurman to be absolutely heartbreaking as Mia tells Vincent a joke she said in the pilot - there's such a delicate sadness in the way she delivers it that it's just beautiful and unforgettable. It's a bittersweet ending scene for the character and Thurman and Travolta deserve a lot of credit for the emotional weight the manage to bring to it. 

This is a fantastic performance from Uma Thurman who doesn't even have that much screen-time but delivers a startling turn: she is raw, delicate, funny, heartbreaking and iconic all at once and makes Mia one of the most powerful elements of an already pitch-perfect movie. A stunning performance that I already can't wait to revisit.

5/5