The Broken Circle Breakdown (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 37 wins & 26 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Johan Heldenbergh	...	Didier Bontinck / Monroe
Veerle Baetens	...	Elise Vandevelde / 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 music | male full frontal nudity | bluegrass | atheist | tattoo | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes love can conquer fate. Sometimes not.

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Genres:

Drama | Music | Romance

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Swiss censorship certificate # 1009.520.

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Quotes

Elise Vandevelde: If I want to believe that Maybelle is a star up in the sky, I will. If I want to believe she's a bird that perches on our window sill, or a butterfly that sits on my shoulder or a bloody frog that...
Didier Bontinck: Maybelle is dead, sweetheart. She's dead. She's gone, she's not here anymore.But we are still here. I'm still here. We have to carry on together.

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Connections

Referenced in L'incertitude des choses (2013)

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Soundtracks

Country in My Genes
Written by Larry Cordle, Larry Shell and Betty Key
Performed by The BCB Band

User Reviews

A masterpiece.

The bittersweet story of Didier and Elise, their child Maybelle and the blue grass music. Seeing this movie at the Berlin Film Festival I didn't expect anything in particular. What I saw was an emotional roller-coaster of a movie, beautifully cinematography, a great book, wonderful music. And oh those actors, bringing these written lines to life. It will bring even the most hard boiled audience to tears. But you will leave the cinema after that with a smile and be grateful for having witnessed the magic of movie making at it's best. Director Felix van Groeningen has made his masterpiece, I don't know how he can top that one. I am sure you will love that movie as much as I do.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Site

Country:

Belgium Netherlands

Language:

Flemish English Dutch

Release Date:

10 October 2012 (Belgium)

Also Known As:

The Broken Circle Breakdown

Filming Locations:

Ghent, East Flanders, Flanders, Belgium

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,100, 3 November 2013

Gross USA:

$175,058

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,990,754

Company Credits

Production Co:

Menuet Producties, Topkapi Films, Belgacom

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1