The Decline of the American Empire is a brilliant black comedy of manners constructed around a series of satiric and witty conversations about sex, love and life between several Montreal academics. The men, Remy, Pierre, Claude, and Alain prepare a gourmet supper which they hope to enjoy with their women Dominique, Louise, Diane and Danielle. The evening proceeds in an amiable manner: Indo-Chinese factionalism is discussed over hors d′oeuvres; the Pope and his prostate are washed down with a fine vintage; and throughout, Remy, Pierre, Claude and Alain persist with a series of lies. But as the evening unfolds and truths are revealed, the group not only confronts a fatal revelation from Dominique but the contradictions of their universe and its deceits, treachery and anguish. In post-1980 referendum Quebec, Denys Arcand perfectly captures a society in transition, desperately seeking individual happiness. The fluent, ironic script strikes a balance between satire and realism that renders The Decline of the American Empire both a thought-provoking and completely entertaining film.