The Broken Circle Breakdown

The Broken Circle Breakdown is a messy and convoluted melodrama that nevertheless manages to keep the viewer connected to its central characters as they experience love and loss in many forms. Call it Scenes From a Belgian Bluegrass Marriage—the non-linear story gives a scrambled but near complete play-by-play of moments both joyous and tragic in the marriage of banjo-playing Didier and tattoo-lovin’ Elisa. The film is based on a play co-written by star Johan Heldenbergh, and perhaps its elliptical structure worked better on stage. As a film, the narrative is often muddled by the disjointed presentation, and the potentially insightful subtext of Europeans co-opting and rejecting American culture and values gets a little bit lost. However, the picture always comes together when the characters are making music. The Flemish leads Heldenbergh and Veerle Baetens have incredible singing voices, and their Appalachian harmonies are worthy of comparison to American bluegrass legends Alison Krauss and Dan Tyminski.