10 Greatest Ever Oscar Shocks
9. The Marisa Tomei Conspiracy
A 1992 comedy starring Joe Pesci as a live wire lawyer is near enough the opposite of Oscar bait, which is why Marisa Tomei’s Mona Lisa taking the prize for best supporting actress remains such a shocking choice. That she beat the likes of Vanessa Redgrave and Judy Davis makes the moment all the more astonishing.
What’s disappointing, if unsurprising, is that folk ever since have been unable to simply be happy for Tomei, instead crying conspiracy (the theory being that elderly host Jack Palance struggled to read the card, shooting out the only name he could remember in a panic).
Not only is that mean, it’s completely missing the joy of Tomei’s performance. Comedy frequently gets a hard time at the Oscars, and it seems here that critics have deemed Tomei unworthy of recognition on the basis the film was of a lighter weight than the others.
To take that position, quite frankly, is to be an enemy of fun. Tomei lights up the screen in her every scene in My Cousin Vinny, and has proven ever since that she is a quality actress (with a further two Oscar nominations in the ‘00s). There’s more to life than period dramas.