I know it's not an answer to the exact question asked, but I found this question looking to diff a file in a branch and a local uncommitted file and I figured I would share
Syntax:
git diff <commit-ish>:./ -- <path>
Examples:
git diff origin/master:./ -- README.md
git diff HEAD^:./ -- README.md
git diff stash@{0}:./ -- README.md
git diff 1A2B3C4D:./ -- README.md
(Thanks Eric Boehs for a way to not have to type the filename twice)