THE name's Doyle, Desmond Doyle.

Doesn't quite have the same ring to it, does it? But at least James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan is having a go at breaking free from the 007 straitjacket at least temporarily.

Evelyn is inspired by the true story of Desmond Doyle (Brosnan), an everyman turned hero who took on the might of the Irish Supreme Court in a desperate bid to keep his family together.

The events take place in Dublin in the early 1950s when the hard up Doyle family is about to be dealt a hammer blow. Desmond's wife has walked out, leaving him to cope with their three children, Evelyn, Maurice and Dermot (Sophie Vavasseur, Hugh MacDonagh and Niall Beagan).

Desmond has barely two pennies to rub together, but he is determined not to see his family broken up.

Unfortunately, the Church and the courts think otherwise and use their powers to put the youngsters in orphanages.

Desmond is devastated, but he won't give up without a fight and attempts what many believe to be madness to challenge a law before the Supreme Court.

Evelyn sets out with good intentions this is a strong human story with instantly recognisable themes covering family life, love and death. It's got an international movie star in the lead role, and a bunch of cute kids. But what should be a powerful and moving film is instead weak, lightweight and unworthy of the talent involved.

Part of the problem is the script, which is clumsy and cliched, and not half as smart as it thinks it is.

"To fight the church and the state is like fighting Goliath," someone tells Desmond.

"Well David beat Goliath in the book I read," is our crusader's response.

And a stereotypical portrayal of Ireland and the Oirish doesn't help. Brosnan's performance is typical of this pandering to Hollywood's blinkered perception of races beyond its borders and as an Irishman himself, Brosnan should know better.

As a co-producer, he clearly has an eye for a good story and this no doubt helped in assembling a strong supporting cast, including Bates, Quinn, Stephen Rea, ER's Julianna Margulies, and Frank Kelly best known as Father Jack from TV's Father Ted, and whose vocabulary here extends beyond "Drink!", "Girls!" and "Feck!".

But try as they might, the material lets them down. And while we should be weeping buckets at the end, the chances are we will be using those pails for something else altogether.

Stick to the vodka martinis, Pierce.

Rating: 4 out of 10