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Huffman gives heart to 'Transamerica'

As most film buffs know by now, the "trans" in "Transamerica" is a transsexual: a man who sees himself as a woman and is in the process of making that psychological state a physical reality. Bree (Felicity Huffman) wears dresses and makeup, takes hormones, and is a week away from taking that final, surgical step. She (to avoid confusion, let's use the pronoun Bree would want) can't wait.

The Weinstein Company 'Transamerica' 3 out of 5 stars Director: Duncan Tucker Starring: Felicity Huffman, Kevin Zegers, Fionnula Flanagan, Graham Greene, Elizabeth Pena Run time: 103 minutes Release date: Dec. 23, 2005 Rating: R for sexual content, nudity, language and drug use. See showtimes On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime Rate 'Transamerica'   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

But the film's title also refers to the venerable genre of the road movie — in which a geographical voyage mirrors an emotional one. If our protagonist is unlike most of Hollywood's characters, the dramatic structure is entirely familiar. When viewers meet a troubled son and the father who didn't know he existed, they might not know what the road has in store, but the final destination is pretty much a given.

Bree is happily awaiting her hospital date when a teenager named Toby calls from jail in New York. A runaway whose mother has died, Toby is hunting for help from the father he's never met.

Startled to learn that her sole sexual experience as a man resulted in a pregnancy, Bree is inclined to play dumb and let the issue drop, but her therapist refuses to sign off on surgery until all loose ends are tied up. So Bree heads to Manhattan, hoping she can help Toby out without admitting who she is. Before long, the two are driving to California: a street kid whose highest ambition is to work in gay porn, and a transsexual who's pretending to be a church volunteer, headed to La-La Land.

As a road movie, "Transamerica" is a middle-achiever, its episodes just varied enough to keep us from losing interest. The film's real asset is Huffman's performance. First-time filmmaker Duncan Tucker might be inclined to get the occasional cheap laugh from Bree — she's prissy, inexperienced and easily flustered — but Huffman makes her fully human and hard to dismiss.