The action comes at us through a buzz of nattering remarks.
Never throw fruit at someone who understands the theatrics of the situation better than you do.
Entertaining the reader is a good function.
The greatest all-around American film actor is James Stewart.
Trivial details have been summoned, in part, to make a satirical point about upper-middle-class marriage-that the whole thing can slip away between the white wine and the arugula salad.
The problem of criticism is not judgment but evocation - conveying the particular emotional and visual feel that the movie has.