Aside from twinning coming out with coming of age, the compelling tale of 52 Tuesdays is notable for a vibrant visual style and a break-through performance by Tilda Cobham-Hervey. As 17 year old Billie, the remarkable young actress heads a cast of newcomers grappling with the announcement that Jane (Billie's mother) is about to undergo gender-reassignment and prefers to go by the name of James. Theirs is a complicated family arrangement: Jane lives in Adelaide with her younger, bi-sexual brother Harry whose own daughter visits once a month. Billie is being sent to live with her father to give Jane 'more space' but to ease over any sense of rejection, they arrange to spend every Tuesday afternoon together.

52 Tuesdays quickly reveals itself as two films tied by the intriguing question: what is an authentic life? As Jane's notion of who she is evolves over the course of a year, so too Billie matures from a high-school kid into a young woman. The methods and story lines cross and overlap, notably with James' video diary and Billie's video confessional. This is the film at its strongest where she, as part of a close-knit high-school threesome, explores identity and sexuality on camera. Less successful are narratives involving adults, particularly and surprisingly the relationship between James and Billie which often becomes clumsy and awkward. The senior cast seem withholding and lend their story a sudsy tone which might find its fans, but they're unquestionably upstaged by younger co-stars.

Cobham-Hervey throws herself at the role with a likeable, believable intensity. Billie is a kid finding her way in the world, and the honest credibility Cobham-Hervey generates helps ease us through less convincing parts of the film, as does director Sophie Hyde's creative use of newsy interstitials as time markers. While trans-issues are the heart of the narrative, they're not really the heart of the film. Consequently the award-winng 52 Tuesdays is something of a hit and miss affair that runs out of steam, but when it works you'll find it a likeable, challenging and thoughtful film.

// COLIN FRASER

Previewed at Dendy Cinemas, Newtown, Sydney, on 20 February 2014