They Were Divided reflects the rapidly disintegrating course of events in central Europe on the eve of WWI. A literary masterpiece, in the foreground it tells the story of Balint and his flawed cousin, Laszlo Gyeroffy, with humor and bittersweet nostalgia for a paradise lost through folly. In the background, the sinister and fast-moving events in the Balkans eventually lead not only to a horrific war, but also to the complete dismemberment of their once-great country.