Jackson Booth-Millard All I knew about this was that it was about a transsexual, that the leading performance was by a woman playing a woman that used to be a man, and that it was an independent film, I had wanted to see it for some time, I'm glad I did eventually. Basically Sabrina 'Bree' Osbourne (Golden Globe winning, and Oscar nominated Felicity Huffman) is a conservative Transgender woman due to have a vaginoplasty in one week. Bree receives an expected phone call from 17-year-old Toby Wilkins (Kevin Zegers), he has been jailed in New York City, he asks for Stanley Schupak (Bree's birth name), who he claims is his father, he was born from her one and only sexual encounter with a woman. Bree was unaware she had a son and wants to renounce him, but her therapist Margaret (Elizabeth Peña) refuses permission for her operation if she does not confront her past before making her new future. Bree flies from Los Angeles to New York and bails Toby out of jail, Toby is a foul-mouthed runaway, a small-time drug dealer and a male prostitute, his mother committed suicide when he was a child, he was raised by his stepfather, whom he does not want to see. Bree pretends to be a Christian missionary and persuades Toby to travel with her back to the West Coast, she secretly plans to leave him at his stepfather's house on the way, it turns out Toby's stepfather was very abusive and molested him several times in his youth. Bree is dismayed with her failed plan to leave Toby, so they continue driving together to Los Angeles, they also stop along the way at a Dallas house where a group of transgender women (many are Bree's friends) are hosting a gender pride gathering. Later on in the trip Bree pulls over to urinate, Toby accidentally discovers that Bree has male genitalia, he is angry at first that she had not told him prior to his unintentional discovery, but he tries to be open-minded about it. They pick up a Hitchhiker (Grant Monohon) on th way, the next morning he steals their car and money, so Bree and Toby hitch a ride, Toby makes some money by prostituting himself, he tells Bree he got the money from selling drugs, they also hitch a ride with kindly rancher Calvin (Dances with Wolves' Graham Greene). They eventually reach Bree's parents' house in Phoenix, Arizona, here lives her pampered and self-centred mother Elizabeth (Yes Man's Fionnula Flanagan), her Jewish father Murray (Rocky's Burt Young), and her rebellious and sarcastic sister Sydney (Carrie Preston). Elizabeth disapproves of Bree's transsexuality, they have been estranged for some time because of her transphobia, but she is astonished she has a grandson, Toby likes Elizabeth's kindness and the luxury, she even invites him to live with them, but he does not like how disrespectful they are to Bree. At night Toby approaches Bree, he realises he has feelings for her and tries to seduce her, saying he will marry her if she wants, but he is appalled when Bree finally reveals that she is his father, infuriated he steals money and valuable antiques and leaves overnight. Devastated Bree returns to Los Angeles, with a plane ticket bought by her parents, her family finally accept her being a woman and calling her Bree, and she undergoes a successful surgery to become a full woman, but she is unhappy she will never see or hear from Toby. Some months later Bree is surprised when Toby comes knocking at her door, he has turned 18, bleached his hair blonde and become an adult actor for gay pornographic films, Bree meanwhile has found happiness working as a waitress at a restaurant, they reconcile, seemingly happy to see each other. Also starring Venida Evans as Arletty and Danny Burstein as Dr. Spikowsky. Huffman, best known as a star of Desperate Housewives, gives a brilliant performance as the pre-op transsexual facing up to parental responsibilities and going through both an emotional and physical journey, it is a traditional road movie with a quirky twist, a weird and mixed but affectionate relationship between former man father and son, it makes you laugh at the right moments, it does have awkward moments, but overall it is a great comedy drama. It was nominated the Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Song for Dolly Parton's "Travelin' Thru". Very good!

Syl Felicity Huffman gave an Academy Award nominated performance as Bree Osbourne, a transsexual on the process of becoming a woman. She learns that she fathered a teenage son in New York from an ex girlfriend. Bree lives by herself in California and works two jobs, one at a Mexican restaurant and as a telemarketer. Her psychiatrist encourages her to face her past before becoming a woman. The film was one of the first about the trans gender issues over ten years ago. Felicity Huffman is a woman playing a man becoming a woman. Huffman earned her accolades well from this performance. As Bree, you see her as sympathetic, alone, and strong as well unwilling to face her disapproving family and her stranger son. The story of Stanley's past comes to meet with Bree's new life. The transcontinental journey reveals her son's own problem life and the circumstances that led to his life in New York City. The film takes a gentle sympathetic approach to the trans gender issue.

Kirsten Fisher The movie TransAmerican portrayed the life of a transgendered individual in today's society in an accurate, relatable way. I found that one powerful example of this was when Bree's psychologist stated that gender dysphoria is a very serious mental disorder and Bree's response was "don't you find it odd that plastic surgery can cure a mental disorder?". This statement alone brought up the fact that transgendered people are not mentally ill and are fully aware of their mind and body and are fully capable of making the important decisions that take place in order to complete their transition. Another powerful aspect was when the little girl asks Bree if she is a boy or a girl. This brings up the issue of gender roles in our society and in order to "fit in" and not be judged you must fall into a strict gender category. This aspect of our society has put a great deal of strain upon transgendered people and their families. In the film they emphasized strained family relationships when addressing Bree's relationship with her parents and with Toby. Throughout the film you were able to see that Bree cared for Toby but was unsure how to interact with him in certain situations due to the fear of how he would react if he found out the truth about her. After the dinner party, when Bree apologized for the "fake" women and Toby responded by saying that he thought they were nice, Bree began to relax and open up around Toby. I found that the ending of TransAmerica was a realistic depiction of some of the struggles that many transgendered people face in connecting with their families. I believe this movie has the ability to raise awareness of the issues transgendered people are faced with, in hopes of creating a more accepting environment.

Lee Eisenberg Duncan Tucker has directed one of the best self-discovery movies of all. "Transamerica" casts Felicity Huffman as Bree, a trans-gender woman about to have a sex-change operation, when she learns that she has a son named Toby (Kevin Zegers). So, she gets the boy out of jail while masquerading as a church lady, and the two of them take a cross-country tour. In the process, Bree learns not only about what kind of boy Toby is, but also about herself.I can't really do the movie justice by simply talking about it. It's a REALLY good movie. Funny but serious at the same time -- without taking itself too seriously -- the movie hits all the right notes. The contrast between Bree's vibrant world in SoCal and Toby's dirty NY apartment couldn't be more stark. The film has got too many good qualities to list here, so I would advise you to just go ahead and see it! Also starring Graham Greene, Fionnula Flanagan, Burt Young (Paulie in "Rocky"), Carrie Preston and Elizabeth Peña.PS: When "Transamerica", "Brokeback Mountain" and "Capote" (all LGBT-themed) won big at the Golden Globes in 2006, Jay Leno called it "God's way of punishing Pat Robertson".