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November 21, 2003
By Tanya Farber
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Aidan Quinn, Julianna Margulies
Director: Bruce Beresford
Running time: 95 minutes
Age restriction: PG
Rating: 6/10
Desmond Doyle (Pierce Brosnan) is jilted by his wife, who seeks greener pastures. You may wonder what pastures could be greener than those of their homeland, Ireland, but for Mrs Doyle, said pastures are metaphorical and present in the former of another man.
The pangs of his broken heart are made worse by the fact that, on account of the absence of a mother figure, his three children are taken from him and put into homes. And thus begins the mammoth struggle, based on a true story, to get them back...
The film is a sweet one, and little Evelyn is charming enough to make us care. The fact that her case could also set a legal precedent in Ireland makes it all the more interesting.
However, there is a major miscast here
. Pierce Brosnan, now with the invisible but irremovable Bond insignia smoothly engraved on his forehead, is unconvincing as the endearing rogue of a dad. He has the charming good looks and the acting skill to go with it, but his face has become too iconic to stand as "low-profile" dad battling to keep his offspring.
At the same time, the movie is over-sentimental in several places, taking away the edge of the important legal battles which characterise it. Sunlight through the window in Evelyn's hand, for example, becomes a cliché-ridden metaphor of her grandfather's love which is poured upon her from beyond the grave.
It is not boring, and for the most part, it's somewhat uplifting, but Evelyn is so traditional a movie that it fails to challenge the audience in any way.
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