Break of Hearts: A Conductor Who Should Have Just Stayed Single

Is it worth your time?

If you like old-school Hollywood melodramas where people speak in paragraphs and wear fabulous coats, sure. If you get annoyed by men who think they’re the center of the universe because they can wave a baton, you’re gonna be yelling at your screen within twenty minutes. This isn't exactly The Diving Fool in terms of thrills, but it has a weird, moody charm that kept me watching.

Katharine Hepburn is doing a lot of heavy lifting here. She plays Constance, and honestly, she brings so much genuine feeling to scenes where she’s just staring at a wall that it makes the rest of the cast look like they're reading from a teleprompter. Charles Boyer is playing the conductor, and he’s... well, he’s playing the 'tormented genius' archetype, which is just code for 'I’m going to be a jerk to my wife because I have feelings.'

The Vibes

• The honeymoon montage feels like it was filmed in a different movie entirely.
• The music is great, but sometimes it swells so loud you forget what they're actually saying.
• There is a specific scene in a cafe that goes on for way too long. It just sits there.
• Hepburn’s hats are the real stars of this show. Honestly.

The pacing is all over the place. One minute they’re falling in love, the next they’re already miserable. It skips over the actual work of being married and jumps straight to the part where they can have big, loud arguments in fancy ballrooms. It feels a bit like Rhythm on the Roof in how much it relies on the music to glue the plot together, though with a lot more sobbing.

I noticed the background extras in the party scenes seem bored out of their minds. There’s one guy in the back left corner of the ballroom who literally just stands there holding a glass for what feels like five minutes. He's my favorite character. He’s seen it all.

The ending isn't as satisfying as I wanted, but then again, these kinds of movies never are. It just sort of stops, like someone tripped over the power cord. If you want something light but slightly bitter, give it a shot. Just don't expect a masterpiece. Sometimes a messy movie is better than a boring one anyway. 🎻