Weaves a simple premise into comedy gold.

Despite the stagey set-up (it was originally conceived as a play and it shows), the film manages to maintain its humor and energy until the final scene in which Veber suddenly casts aside his delightful meanspiritedness and gets soft-hearted and preachy.

Some realist nuances in the characters' behavior become more intriguing than the belabored humor.

One of the best of the crop of new movies, The Dinner Game, is a telling assault on the ironic sensibility.