The Broken Circle (2012)

Elise and Didier fall in love at first sight, in spite of their differences. He talks, she listens. He's a romantic atheist, she's a religious realist. When their daughter becomes seriously ill, their love is put on trial.

Director:

Felix van Groeningen

Writers:

Johan Heldenbergh (play), Mieke Dobbels (play)

Stars:

Veerle Baetens, Johan Heldenbergh, Nell Cattrysse

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 33 wins & 24 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johan Heldenbergh	...	Didier / Monroe
Veerle Baetens	...	Elise / Alabama
Nell Cattrysse	...	Maybelle
Geert Van Rampelberg	...	William
Nils De Caster	...	Jock
Robbie Cleiren	...	Jimmy (as Robby Cleiren)
Bert Huysentruyt	...	Jef
Jan Bijvoet	...	Koen
Sofie Sente
Ruth Beeckmans	...	(as Ruth Beekmans)
Jan Hammenecker	...	Doctor
Blanka Heirman	...	Denise
Kirsten Pieters
Yves Degryse
Dominique Van Malder

Storyline

Elise and Didier fall in love at first sight. She has her own tattoo shop and he plays the banjo in a bluegrass band. They bond over their shared enthusiasm for American music and culture, and dive headfirst into a sweeping romance that plays out on and off stage - but when an unexpected tragedy hits their new family, everything they know and love is tested. An intensely moving portrait of a relationship from beginning to end, propelled by a soundtrack of foot-stomping bluegrass, The Broken Circle Breakdown is a romantic melodrama of the highest order.

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Plot Keywords:

bluegrass | tattoo | suicide | george w. bush | loss of daughter | 

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Genres:

Drama | Music | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Site

Country:

Belgium Netherlands

Language:

English Flemish Dutch

Release Date:

25 April 2013 (Germany)

Also Known As:

The Broken Circle

Filming Locations:

Ghent, East Flanders, Flanders, Belgium

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$7,100 (USA) (1 November 2013)

Gross:

$30,700 (USA) (15 November 2013)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Menuet Producties, Topkapi Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie is based on a play written by Johan Heldenbergh, who also played the lead role as Didier. During the casting for the movie, the original actress playing Elise was replaced by Veerle Baetens, which was Felix van Groeningen's decision.

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Quotes

Elise Vandevelde: Life is NOT generous.

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Connections

Featured in The Oscars (2014)

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Soundtracks

Bridal Chorus from Lohengrin
(uncredited)
Written by Richard Wagner
Performed by Jan Bijvoet and Robbie Cleiren (as Robby Cleirin)

User Reviews

Very beautiful Belgian drama

Yesterday i saw this beautiful movie about life, love and death. After half an hour i had the feeling i was looking to a amazingly well balanced and touching film. Every scene, switches in time, music and countryside setting, the actors, the Flemish language ... it all seems to fit together. All credits for that, because the content is rather heavy: the life of the the two leading persons turns completely upside down when their child becomes very ill. The good thing is that - despite the dramatic events - the film doesn't become sentimental at all. The enormous grief is shown beautiful in small details like a bent hand (in the song if i needed you) or the facial expressions of the main actors. Amazing (and yet, easy to believe) how two people can react so different on a tragic event like losing your child.