NEW YORK—All is well in love until it’s tested by the harsh realities of life and death—as in the case of Didier and Elise whose conflicting faiths don’t surface until their daughter becomes seriously ill in “The Broken Circle Breakdown.”
The film tells the story of Didier, an atheist, and Elise, a devout believer.
Living in the quaint Belgian countryside, the two characters are bound by their love for Americana. Didier is infatuated with the American dream. He plays and sings in a local bluegrass band while Elise runs her own tattoo parlor.
The two quickly fall in love and get married. Elise moves into his trailer and the two live comfortable lives, singing country songs with their friends under the stars around a campfire. They keep their relationship afloat by focusing on their interests, avoiding any serious conversation or exploration of their beliefs, until Elise gets pregnant.
Surprised and stumped by the news, Didier starts the construction on the house structure that stood in front of their trailer. They have a beautiful daughter, and name her Maybelle. But, when Maybelle becomes seriously ill, their dream-like relationship crumbles as they struggle to find common ground in their beliefs.
“In every possible way, Didier and Elise are different—they think differently about life,” director Felix Van Groeninger said during an Oct. 30 interview at the Tribeca Films offices in lower Manhattan.
Faith and Love
Elise believes in an afterlife, while Didier is convinced that after death, a body simply decays in the ground.
The Broken Circle Breakdown is an adaptation of a theatrical play which Van Groeninger saw in Belgium in 2009.
One scene, where Didier sets off on a rage when he watches a George W. Bush address on TV that addresses genetic engineering, inspired Van Groeninger to make the play into a feature. Didier wasn’t really angry about genetic engineering; his outbursts were a reflection of his inability to deal with an episode of personal loss, Van Groeninger said.
Van Groeninger started adopting the play in 2010, choosing to include the central themes of faith and admiration of the American culture intact. He also auditioned the two lead characters, played by Johan Heldenbergh and Veerle Baetens to test their vocal abilities.
Although Heldenbergh was an obvious match since he was the lead in the theatrical production as well as the co-writer of the play, the search for Baetens meant auditions upon auditions.
When Van Groeninger found the two leads, they rehearsed and recorded for six months before shooting the film, allowing the two to grow into their characters.
In fact, the bluegrass sounds are central to the film and tell half the story, according to Van Groeningen.
“It glues everything together,” he said. The music also helps the viewers cope with the intensely emotional scenes that require a break, without exiting the emotion of the scene.
The name of the film borrows its title from a popular bluegrass song “Can the Circle Be Unbroken” by country legend A. P. Carter, who re-arranged it from a Christian hymn written by Ada R. Habershon. Didier swept Elise off her feet when he sang this song in the film with his band.
The film has been selected to represent Belgium in the international film category at the Oscars next year. The film is playing at the Landmark Sunshine Cinema in New York City.
