The Decline of the American Empire

The Decline of the American Empire
French-language film poster
Directed by	Denys Arcand
Written by	Denys Arcand
Starring	Dominique Michel Dorothée Berryman Rémy Girard Pierre Curzi Louise Portal Yves Jacques Geneviève Rioux Daniel Brière Gabriel Arcand
Release dates	June 19, 1986 (Quebec) November 14, 1986 (USA)
Running time	101 min.
Country	Canada
Language	French

The Decline of the American Empire (French Le Déclin de l'empire américain) is a 1986 Canadian comedy/drama film directed by Denys Arcand. It was followed by two sequels, The Barbarian Invasions in 2003 and Days of Darkness in 2007.

Synopsis

Eight intellectual friends - four men and four women from the Department of History at the Université de Montréal - prepare to have dinner together. The ensuing conversations range from their professional lives to politics, but primarily concern their sexual exploits. The group has plans to gather at a secluded house for dinner. While the four men prepare the food and reflect on their promiscuity, the four women discuss their own affairs at a nearby gym. At the dinner table, conflicts soon arise when Dominique reveals that she herself has had affairs with two of the men there, one of whom is married to Louise (also present).

Awards

The film won 9 Genie Awards in 1987, including Best Motion Picture, Best Achievement in Direction, Best Original Screenplay, Best Achievement in Film Editing, and the Golden Reel Award. It also received the International Critic's Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

In 2004, the film was honoured as a MasterWork by the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada. The Toronto International Film Festival ranked it in the Top 10 Canadian Films of All Time twice, in 1993 and 2004.

The film was nominated for the 1986 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

External links

• The Decline of the American Empire at IMDb
• AVTrust.ca - The Decline of the American Empire, MasterWorks (2004) (video clip)