52 Tuesdays

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52 Tuesdays
52 Tuesdays poster.jpg
North American theatrical release poster
Directed by Sophie Hyde
Screenplay byMatthew Cormack
Story byMatthew Cormack
Sophie Hyde
Produced by Matthew Cormack
Sophie Hyde
Bryan Mason
Rebecca Summerton
Starring Tilda Cobham-Hervey
Del Herbert-Jane
CinematographyBryan Mason
Edited byBryan Mason
Music by Benjamin Speed
Distributed byCloser Productions
Release dates
  • 15 October 2013 (2013-10-15)(Adelaide Film Festival) [1]
  • 14 May 2014 (2014-05-14)
Running time
109 minutes
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish

52 Tuesdays is a 2013 Australian coming-of-age drama film directed by Sophie Hyde, with the screenplay written by Matthew Cormack and story by Cormack and Hyde. The film centres on a teenage girl dealing with the gender transition of a parent. The film showed at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, [2] where it was not only nominated for the Grand Jury Prize, but won the Best Director Award. Over the following year it won numerous other awards and garnered global critical acclaim.

Contents

Plot

16-year-old Billie lives in suburban Australia. One of her parents comes out to her as a transgender man named James. Billie then learns that James wants Billie to live with her other parent, James's ex-husband Tom, for a year. This restricts the time Billie is together with James to Tuesdays from 16:00 - 22:00, starting on 23 August. The film is divided into the corresponding 52 segments, each covering one Tuesday, and starting with a title card showing the date.

Each Tuesday, after visiting James and before returning to Tom, Billie has secret encounters with two older students, Josh and Jasmine, in an apartment that her uncle Harry allows them to use. Billie films sexual experiments of the threesome.

James meets a setback in his transition when his body does not tolerate testosterone injections, and he has to stop them.

After sending a nude photograph of herself to Jasmine, Billie gets into trouble as this is considered child pornography. The school principal, James, Tom and Jasmine strongly disapprove it. Billie is shocked that James destroys one of her tapes, and refuses further contact with him. Josh does not want physical contact with Billie anymore because of Tom's disapproval.

Later Billie is willing to destroy a remaining tape, but since it is in James's house who she no longer visits, she is dependent on Harry, who finally destroys it for her.

When the year is finished, Billie reconciles with James, and starts living with him again. Also Billie, Josh and Jasmine become friends again.

Cast

Production

52 Tuesdays was filmed in suburban Adelaide over the course of a year, every Tuesday, to fit in with the storyline of the film. [3] [4] This in itself made it unique. [5] It was led by first-time actors and Hyde enjoyed the measure of intimacy and control that she had in the making of the film. [6]

Release and reception

52 Tuesdays won the Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. 52 Tuesdays Wins the World Cinema Dramatic Directing Award (12186023635).jpg
52 Tuesdays won the Directing Award: World Cinema Dramatic at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.

The film was released theatrically in Australia on 1 May 2014.

Critical response

52 Tuesdays was met with positive reviews from critics upon its premiere at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. It has a 90% critics' approval rating based on 39 reviews at Rotten Tomatoes. [7]

Geoff Berkshire said in Variety that the film "Demonstrates a willingness to experiment that bodes well for future endeavors." [8] David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter in his review said "A thoughtful drama about a mother and daughter whose connection is tested as they both go through intense changes." [9] Tom Clift of Concrete Playground gave a positive review, saying: "Honest, insightful and bravely against the grain, 52 Tuesdays is a magnificent debut for cast and filmmaker alike." [10]

Accolades

AwardCategorySubjectResult
AACTA Awards [11]
(4th)		 Best Original Screenplay Matthew CormackNominated
Sophie Hyde Nominated
Best Editing Bryan Mason Nominated
Apolo Awards [12] [13] Best EditingWon
Best New Director Sophie Hyde Nominated
Best New ActorDel Herbert-JaneNominated
Best New Actress Tilda Cobham-Hervey Won
Asia Pacific Screen Award Best Youth Feature FilmBryan MasonNominated
Rebecca Summerton Nominated
Matthew CormackNominated
Sophie HydeNominated
ADG Award Best Direction in a Feature FilmNominated
AFCA Awards Best DirectorNominated
Best ScreenplayMatthew CormackNominated
Best ActressTilda Cobham-HerveyNominated
ASE Award Best Editing in a Feature FilmBryan MasonWon
AWGIE Award Best Writing in a Feature Film - OriginalMatthew CormackWon
Berlin International Film Festival Crystal Bear [14] Sophie HydeWon
Reader Jury of the "Siegessäule"Won
Score Competition Benjamin Speed Nominated
Best Feature FilmBryan MasonNominated
Rebecca SummertonNominated
Matthew CormackNominated
Sophie HydeNominated
Chéries-Chéris Grand PrixNominated
Cleveland International Film Festival ReelWomenDirect Award for Excellence in Directing by a WomanNominated
Cork Film Festival Youth Jury AwardWon
Glasgow Film Festival Audience AwardNominated
FCCA Awards Best ScreenplayMatthew CormackNominated
Best ActressTilda Cobham-HerveyNominated
Best EditingBryan MasonNominated
Melbourne Queer Film Festival Best Feature FilmSophie HydeWon
International Festival of Independent Cinema Off Camera Making Way AwardNominated
Sundance Film Festival Directing Award [15] Won
Grand Jury PrizeNominated
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival Just Film Award - Special MentionWon
Just Film Award - Best Youth FilmNominated
Inside Out Film and Video Festival (Toronto)Bill Sherwood Award for Best First FeatureWon

References

  1. ↑ "My 52 Tuesdays". 29 August 2013. Archived from the original on 5 June 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  2. ↑ Caceda, Eden (9 December 2013). "Two Aussie Features Selected For Sundance". Filmink . Archived from the original on 27 June 2015.
  3. ↑ "52 Tuesdays". Adelaide Film Festival. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  4. ↑ "Australian director Sophie Hyde wins prize at Sundance film festival". The Guardian. 26 January 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  5. ↑ "52 Tuesdays". Closer Productions. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  6. ↑ Marsh, Walter (28 March 2019). "Sophie Hyde on Animals, nostalgia and letting friendships die". The Adelaide Review. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  7. ↑ "52 Tuesdays". Rotten Tomatoes . Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 2 April 2019.
  8. ↑ Berkshire, Geoff (27 January 2014). "Sundance Film Review: '52 Tuesdays'". Variety. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  9. ↑ Rooney, David (26 January 2014). "52 Tuesdays: Sundance Review". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  10. ↑ "52 Tuesdays". Concrete Playground. Archived from the original on 26 April 2014. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  11. ↑ "AACTA AWARDS 2014: All the nominees". SBS Movies. 3 December 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
  12. ↑ "Las mejores películas de temática LGTB del 2015: ganadores de los I Premios Apolo de cine LGTB". dosmanzanas (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  13. ↑ "Las mejores películas de temática LGTB del 2015: nominaciones de los I Premios Apolo de cine LGTB". dosmanzanas (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  14. ↑ "2014 Berlin Film Festival". berlinale.de. Archived from the original on 23 March 2014. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
  15. ↑ "2014 Sundance Film Festival". Sundance.org. Archived from the original on 10 February 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
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