Belgium’s submission for the Foreign Language Film to the 2014 Academy Awards is the film The Broken Circle Breakdown, a love-at-first-sight story about a woman who owns a tattoo shop and a man who plays the banjo in a Bluegrass Band, and the tragedy that tests their love.
The film is to be released in the US starting in New York on November 1st, and then gradually throughout the country into December. The film’s soundtrack has already become the top selling movie soundtrack ever in its home country of Belgium. The soundtrack features The Broken Circle Breakdown Bluegrass Band, which was formed during the films production and includes the film’s composer Bjorn Eriksson, Nils De Caster on violin, mandolin and vocals, Karl Eriksson on banjo and vocals, Thomas De Smet on bass and Bert Van Bortel on guitar, mandolin, and vocals. The band is lead, however, by the main actors Veerle Baetens and Johan Heldenbergh.
The band has written original music for the film as well as creating new arrangements of classic bluegrass songs of such artists including Bruce Springsteen and Lyle Lovett. The soundtrack is heavily infused into the narrative of the film. The director Felix Van Groeningen stating “We have tried to let the songs find their spot in the scenario in a more organized manner and by doing so, give them the greatest possible dramatic impact. Sometimes a song is purely narrative and helps to tell the story or is even used as an ellipsis. In other places, we select a given song because it underpins the emotions.”
The success of the film’s soundtrack in Belgium is very telling, and as the film revolves around a couple who shares in their love for American music and culture, it is sure to be well received in the US as well.
The soundtrack can be streamed on Spotify at: https://play.spotify.com/album/6ZAMBVFqOXYFMlqXRjxCdp?play=true&utm_source=open.spotify.com&utm_medium=open
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Source: Tribeca Film
