Film gives Huffman acting showcase
By Bruce R. Miller Journal staff writer | Posted: Friday, March 03, 2006
What came first, the actress or the project?
That's the question swirling around "Transamerica," a fascinating character study that brought Felicity Huffman her first Oscar nomination. But was the film created so the actress could nab the prize? Or was it a legitimate story just looking for a good actress?
Those questions never disappear as Huffman plays a pre-operative transsexual named Bree who discovers the son she never knew she had.
Before going through with the surgery, she's encouraged to meet the boy (Kevin Zegers), establish some kind of relationship and, hopefully, move forward. A road trip to California serves as the catalyst and as a way for audiences to get to know Bree. Thanks to Huffman's detailed work, it's easy to see the uncomfortable male that still lurks inside. Try as she might, Bree still seems out of her element. She doesn't quite know how to flirt. She can't quite find a look. But she's determined to embrace the life she never thought she could have.
Initially, she keeps her identity a secret. Then, on a stop at her parents' house, plenty spills out. The boy discovers the truth; her parents (Fionnula Flanagan and Burt Young) aren't comfortable with their son wanting to be their daughter. Writer/director Duncan Tucker gets plenty of grist from the visit but doesn't know how to handle another stop (at a transexual's home) or the post-op scenes. He finds the character's desperation (though that may be Huffman's coup) but can't harness her motivation.
"Transamerica," as a result, isn't sure if it's a comedy or a drama. There are elements of both but neither takes hold. "Transamerica" is as ambiguous as its subject.
As great as she is, Huffman never erases the fact that this is a woman playing a man wanting to be a woman. We're constantly conscious of the process. A man in the role might have changed everything -- and made the film more accessible. As is, it's a distant piece of work that begs to be embraced, but only at arm's length.
Zegers and Flanagan are fine supporting actors and Graham Greene has a nice turn as a man the two travelers meet on the way west. Had Bree opened up to him and told him the truth, he probably wouldn't have cared. But the scene never takes place and the relationship doesn't take hold.
Instead, everything goes as planned and Bree winds up, for better or worse, with the life she thought she couldn't have. Tucker leaves his audience wanting more -- what does happen after the final scene -- but that could be because Huffman has made her character so vulnerable. Bree isn't strong enough to face the world that wants to knock her down.
But, darn it, if she isn't going to give it a try.
Rated R, "Transamerica" features nudity, profanity and some violence.
On a scale of four stars, "Transamerica" gets:
2 1/2
That's the question swirling around "Transamerica," a fascinating character study that brought Felicity Huffman her first Oscar nomination. But was the film created so the actress could nab the prize? Or was it a legitimate story just looking for a good actress?
Those questions never disappear as Huffman plays a pre-operative transsexual named Bree who discovers the son she never knew she had.
Before going through with the surgery, she's encouraged to meet the boy (Kevin Zegers), establish some kind of relationship and, hopefully, move forward. A road trip to California serves as the catalyst and as a way for audiences to get to know Bree. Thanks to Huffman's detailed work, it's easy to see the uncomfortable male that still lurks inside. Try as she might, Bree still seems out of her element. She doesn't quite know how to flirt. She can't quite find a look. But she's determined to embrace the life she never thought she could have.
Initially, she keeps her identity a secret. Then, on a stop at her parents' house, plenty spills out. The boy discovers the truth; her parents (Fionnula Flanagan and Burt Young) aren't comfortable with their son wanting to be their daughter. Writer/director Duncan Tucker gets plenty of grist from the visit but doesn't know how to handle another stop (at a transexual's home) or the post-op scenes. He finds the character's desperation (though that may be Huffman's coup) but can't harness her motivation.
"Transamerica," as a result, isn't sure if it's a comedy or a drama. There are elements of both but neither takes hold. "Transamerica" is as ambiguous as its subject.
As great as she is, Huffman never erases the fact that this is a woman playing a man wanting to be a woman. We're constantly conscious of the process. A man in the role might have changed everything -- and made the film more accessible. As is, it's a distant piece of work that begs to be embraced, but only at arm's length.
Zegers and Flanagan are fine supporting actors and Graham Greene has a nice turn as a man the two travelers meet on the way west. Had Bree opened up to him and told him the truth, he probably wouldn't have cared. But the scene never takes place and the relationship doesn't take hold.
Instead, everything goes as planned and Bree winds up, for better or worse, with the life she thought she couldn't have. Tucker leaves his audience wanting more -- what does happen after the final scene -- but that could be because Huffman has made her character so vulnerable. Bree isn't strong enough to face the world that wants to knock her down.
But, darn it, if she isn't going to give it a try.
Rated R, "Transamerica" features nudity, profanity and some violence.
On a scale of four stars, "Transamerica" gets:
2 1/2
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