| BIOGRAPHY
An actress noted as much for her exotic, almost otherworldly
beauty as she is for her considerable talent, Uma Thurman is one
of the most renowned actors of her generation. The daughter of
celebrated professor of Buddhist studies Robert F.A. Thurman and
Nena von Schlebrugge, a model and psychotherapist who was once
married to Timothy Leary, Uma was born in Boston on April 29,
1970.
Raised with three brothers in Amherst, where her father taught
at Amherst College, she enjoyed a fairly bohemian upbringing,
one that was marked by visits from Eastern holy men and Tibetan
refugees. Encouraged to think for herself and be independent,
Thurman, who had been interested in acting from an early age,
left her Massachusetts boarding school at the age of 15 to pursue
an acting career. Moving to New York, she earned a living by washing
dishes and modeling, though the latter means of support never
agreed with her.
The fledgling actress made her debut in Kiss Daddy Goodnight
(1987), a forgettable film that cast her as a teen vamp who seduces
and robs unsuspecting men. She had a starring role in the teen
comedy Johnny Be Good (1988) and also made an eye-catching appearance
in Terry Gilliam's underseen fantasy adventure film The Adventures
of Baron Munchausen (1988). But it wasn't until her casting in
Stephen Frears' Dangerous Liaisons (1988) as Cécile de
Volanges, the impressionable convent girl deflowered by John Malkovich's
slimy Vicomte de Valmont, that Thurman first gained recognition.
Her scenes with Malkovich, particularly the one in which he offers
to teach her a few bedroom terms in Latin, proved to be some of
the most memorable of the year, resulting in a sizable helping
of fame for the young actress.
Further recognition followed with Thurman's portrayal of Henry
Miller's wife -- and the object of both his and Anaïs Nin's
affections -- in Philip Kaufman's Henry & June (1990). Unfortunately,
the actress' role in the NC-17 film -- which required her to take
part in explicit love scenes with Maria de Medeiros -- inspired
a great deal of unwelcome, stalker-like attention from any number
of "fans," causing Thurman to shy away from doing a
subsequent number of films. The projects she did take part in
all proved to be forgettable affairs: Robin Hood (1991), Final
Analysis (1992), Jennifer 8 (1992), Mad Dog and Glory (1993),
and Gus Van Sant's Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1994).
By the time Thurman received the script for Quentin Tarantino's
Pulp Fiction, her career was in great need of resuscitation. Fortunately,
Pulp Fiction provided just that. A huge, unanticipated success,
it was the most talked-about film of the year, eventually becoming
recognized as one of the most influential films of the decade.
For her part, Thurman gave a sly, smoldering performance as Mia
Wallace, the coke-snorting wife of gangster Marsellus Wallace
(Ving Rhames), and soon found herself enjoying both a Best Supporting
Actress Oscar nomination and an accompanying resurgence in Hollywood
popularity.
She followed the success of Pulp Fiction with three relatively
modest romantic comedies: A Month by the Lake (1995), The Truth
About Cats & Dogs (1996), and Beautiful Girls (1996). The
1997 future dystopia Gattaca did little for Thurman but introduce
her to co-star and future husband Ethan Hawke. (The two married
in May of 1998 and had a daughter later that year; Thurman had
been married once before, to Gary Oldman). Batman & Robin,
that same year, was less than a high point in Thurman's career.
1998 proved to be similarly disappointing, with both The Avengers,
which cast the actress as the cat-suited Emma Peel opposite Ralph
Fiennes' John Steed, and Bille August's Les Miserables experiencing
swift deaths at the box office.
|
FILMOGRAPHY
• Be Cool (2005)
• Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004)
• Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003)
• Paycheck (2003)
• Chelsea Walls (2002)
• Hysterical Blindness (2002)
• The Golden Bowl (2001)
• Tape (2001)
• Vatel (2000)
• Sweet and Lowdown (1999)
• The Avengers (1998)
• Les Miserables (1998)
• Batman & Robin (1997)
• Gattaca (1997)
• Beautiful Girls (1996)
• The Truth About Cats and Dogs (1996)
• A Month by the Lake (1995)
• Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1994)
• Pulp Fiction (1994)
• Mad Dog and Glory (1993)
• Final Analysis (1992)
• Jennifer 8 (1992)
• Robin Hood (1991)
• Henry & June (1990)
• Where the Heart Is (1990)
• The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988)
• Dangerous Liaisons (1988)
• Johnny Be Good (1988)
• Kiss Daddy Goodnight (1987) |
