When Adam's novel Bright Young Things, commissioned by tabloid newspaper magnate Lord Monomark, is confiscated by HM customs officers at the port of Dover for being too racy, he finds himself in a precarious financial situation that may force him to postpone his marriage.

In the lounge of the hotel where he lives, he wins £1,000 by performing a trick involving sleight of hand and a character called "the Major" offers to place the money on the decidedly ill-favoured Indian Runner in a forthcoming horse race.

Adam and Nina are part of a young and decadent crowd, whose lives are dedicated to wild parties, alcohol, cocaine, and the latest gossip reported by columnist Simon Balcairn, known to his readers as Mr Chatterbox.

[3] The soundtrack features several standards of the era, including "Nina", "Twentieth Century Blues", "Dance, Little Lady" and "The Party's Over Now" performed by Noël Coward, "Mairzy Doats" by The Merry Macs, and "Hear My Song, Violetta" by Victor Silvester and His Orchestra.

[7] A. O. Scott of The New York Times said, "Mr. Fry revels in the chaos of the plot, and the profusion of arch one-liners and zany set pieces gives the picture a hectic, slightly out-of-control feel.

[9] Carla Meyer of the San Francisco Chronicle called the film a "witty, energetic adaptation" but thought "Fry, so deft with lighthearted moments, seems uncomfortable with Waugh's moralizing, and more serious scenes fall flat".

[11] Derek Elley of Variety called the film "a slick, no-nonsense adaptation…an easy-to-digest slice of literate entertainment for upscale and older auds that lacks a significant emotional undertow to make it a truly involving—rather than simply voyeuristic—experience…Fry's script fillets out even the few traces of a darker underside that creep through in the second half of Waugh's original.

[6] Michael Wilmington of the Chicago Tribune described it as "a brilliant, giddy satiric romp with a discreetly moralistic viewpoint beneath its high-style wit", "a ball to watch", and "an incredibly entertaining film with a magnificent cast", and called Fry "a splendid director capable of visual dazzle and superb ensemble work".