Evelyn : Movie Review


Before Pierce Brosnan became James Bond, he participated in a variety of cinematic projects; however, since inheriting the 007 mantle from Timothy Dalton, he has largely been typecast as a secret agent/action hero type. His participation in Bruce Beresford's Evelyn allows him to slip out of the role that has lately been his bread-and-butter, and get back to the kinds of things he once did. For Beresford, whose resume virtually defines uneven, this is one of his high points. Evelyn is a shamelessly uplifting motion picture that attains its feel-good status by forging a deep emotional connection between the undertrodden protagonist and the audience.

The bulk of the film transpires during 1954 in Dublin, and concerns a court case that resulted in sweeping changes being made to Irish custody laws. Evelyn bears the "based on a true story" label, but, considering the flow of the narrative, my guess is that only the bare-bones facts remain. I don't mind when a screenwriter takes a fair amount of artistic license with the historical record, and the strength of Paul Pender's script argues that he and Beresford made the right choices.

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Author : James Berardinelli