Marisa Tomei: five best moments

http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2015/feb/13/marisa-tomei-five-best-moments

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New Yorker Marisa Tomei has one of those film careers full of ups and downs. She gained recognition with an Oscar win early in her career, then followed it with a decade of mostly mediocre movies that didn’t display her full potential. The 21st century brought more promise in both powerful dramas and oddball comedies, before the Academy took notice of her again in 2008 for The Wrestler.

Tomei returns alongside John Lithgow and Alfred Molina in drama Love Is Strange, out on Friday in the UK, and released last summer in the US and Australia. Which of her performances would you add to this top five?

My Cousin Vinny

An urban legend suggests that Tomei only won a 1993 best supporting actress Oscar for her turn as Mona Lisa Vito because award presenter Jack Palance misspoke. The truth is, her performance – and undeniable chemistry with Joe Pesci – was the pillar of the film. Without it, My Cousin Vinny would have been another so-so comedy.

Only You

Tomei has mostly notched up supporting performances, but here assumed the leading role in the 1994 romantic comedy about finding true love. As protagonist Faith Corvatch she proved she was more than capable of carrying the film, though Robert Downey Jr’s charm certainly helped things along.

What Women Want

In this supporting role – similar to her fun, spontaneous performance in 2011’s Crazy, Stupid, Love – Tomei succeeded in creating a character that viewers remembered, even if she wasn’t the leading actress who ends up with Mel Gibson’s protagonist.

In the Bedroom

Ten years after her Oscar win, Tomei astonished critics with her role as a divorced woman with children who falls in love with a younger man. The crime drama earned her Golden Globe and Academy award nominations, reminding the world of her talent.

The Wrestler

Tomei’s portrayal of stripper and mother Cassidy (or Pam), who like Mickey Rourke’s part-time wrestler, may be becoming too old for her chosen profession, was widely praised. For her warm and enduring role, she earned best supporting actress nominations at the Oscars, Golden Globes and Baftas, and picked up a selection of critics’ awards.