It depends. If you have an older, non-interference engine (also known as a freewheeling engine), a broken timing belt will cause the engine to stop working until the belt is replaced. However, most modern engines are interference engines, which changes things greatly.
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Interference engines are more powerful and efficient than freewheeling engines because they allow the pistons to create even more compression. They do this by making it so that a fully-extended piston occupies the same space in the cylinder that an open valve would occupy. This makes timing exceptionally important. If the timing belt breaks and the rotation of the camshafts and crankshaft aren't synchronized, the pistons may fully extend while the valves are open, striking them and causing massive engine damage. In cases like this, it's usually cheaper and better to replace the engine entirely rather than attempting repair.
No. Your car assuredly does have something to control the timing, but it's not always a belt. There are three main ways to control timing, though one isn't used as much as the others. The least-used method is actually the earliest: a timing gear. These gears are sturdy and won't snap, but they're also heavy and loud, making them less suitable for passenger cars. So, timing chains were invented. These work similarly to timing belts, and they're lighter than gears. Timing belts are actually a more recent way of controlling timing. They began to replace timing chains because they're even lighter and quieter. However, many modern vehicles have begun to be outfitted with chains again, since a timing chain should last for the life of the vehicle.
To find out whether your vehicle has a timing belt, check your owner's manual.
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Older vehicles used free-running or non-interference engines. In these engines, the pistons and the valves never occupy the same space in the cylinder. However, most modern engines are interference engines. These engines allow the pistons to create even more compression, producing more powerful and more efficient engines. The trade-off is that the valves and the pistons would occupy the same space in the cylinders if the valves were open and the pistons fully extended.
The synchronization of the crankshaft and camshafts means that this shouldn't happen--but a broken timing belt means that these two parts will no longer be synchronized. In a free-running engine, this would lead to reduced engine power and eventual stopping of the engine entirely. But things are different in interference engines. The pistons are likely to move up and strike the valves while they're still open, and that results in serious damage to a variety of internal engine parts. This is incredibly expensive to repair, and can sometimes cause enough damage that it might make sense to get a new engine--or a new car--rather than repair the damaged one.
Sadly, there usually aren't any symptoms that a timing belt is going to fail. There may occasionally be some small signs, like a ticking noise that might come from the engine. However, these symptoms are easy to miss, and hard to properly diagnose (since they can be caused by other problems, as well). Often, a timing belt will simply break with no warning. It's for this reason that it's vital to get your timing belt replaced when your owner's manual recommends. Doing otherwise is taking an awful risk.
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