July 11, 2019 · 2 min read

Deliveryman’s decision drives ‘Fall of the American Empire’

Also showing at the Ross is 'Souvenir'

Sony Pictures Classics

"The Fall of the American Empire," opening July 12 at the Ross, features Alexandre Landry (right) and Maripier Morin.

Stumbling into a robbery gone wrong, delivery driver Pierre-Paul Daust faces a dilemma — exit empty handed or take the money and run.

Repercussions of that decision play out in “The Fall of the American Empire,” a new film showing July 12-25 at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center.

Directed by Denys Arcand, the film follows the 36-year-old Daust who is an intellectual, having earned a doctorate in philosophy, but works as a delivery driver to afford a decent living. One day, while delivering a parcel, he gets caught in a failed hold-up with two dead and millions in money bags on the ground.

As the plot unfolds, Arcand takes a witty yet touching look at the predominance of money in a society where all other values seem to be crumbling.

“The Fall of the American Empire” is rated R for strong violence, sexual content, nudity and language. The first screening at the Ross is 4:35 p.m. July 12.

Trailer: "The Fall of the American Empire"

Continuing to show at the Ross is “The Souvenir,” which features a shy but ambitious film student (played by Honor Swinton Byrne) finding her voice as an artist while navigating a turbulent courtship. She defies her protective mother (Tilda Swinton) and concerned friends as she falls deeper into a relationship that comes dangerously close to destroying her dreams.

By acclaimed writer-director Joanna Hogg, “The Souvenir” is rated R for some sexuality, graphic nudity, drug material and language. It shows through July 18.