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By
DEBORAH NICOL
The problem with creating a
movie around a true story is that there are many
pitfalls. Embellish the truth too much, and get
skewered by the fact checkers. Leave the tale too
dry, and loose any audience appeal. Take a time of
difficulty and add sappy ideas such as "angel
rays," and the next Lifetime channel's story of
the week has been made. The latter is the peril of
"Evelyn."
Family law became a battle ground in many Irish
homes of the 1950s, when a non-widowed single
parent could not raise his own children. Children
were ripped away from their parents and shipped
off to Catholic orphanages as ordered by the
state. When Desmond Doyle's wife runs away to
Australia with another man, he is left with their
three kids and little money to support them. As he
attempts to attain a steady income and be rid of
his drinking habit, he befriends a barrister and
forces him to take the challenge of the case. With
no luck in the lower courts, their only choice is
to take it to Ireland's Supreme Court. The oldest
child, Evelyn (author of the original book),
becomes the media darling with her father's
treasured curls and wisdom beyond her years.
An odd little cast (Pierce Brosnan, Aidan Quinn,
Julianna Margulies and Stephen Rea) hams it up
with quaint little jokes and laughs usually
reserved for the frozen shot at the end of a
sitcom. As Brosnan and Quinn's characters
passively fight over Margulies, the loser chuckles
off the loss as if she were merely the last piece
of a cake. The dialogue includes gems in the vein
of, "Oh no, you don't mean the Supreme
Court!" and a lot of "aw, geez" attitude. It is a
shame that such a terrible and fascinating example
of church versus state has been treated so
lightly.
Though the DVD is filled with extras, like the
movie, they prove not very interesting. Along with
trailers, a photo gallery, and a soundtrack spot,
are the options for commentary by the director or
Brosnan and the producer. Two featurettes are
included, the first of which provides entirely too
much screen time to a bored Brosnan discussing the
details of getting the project off the ground. |
