-- Margo's maid, Birdie (Thelma Ritter), is suspicious of Eve's motives right from the beginning. In a film of such well-drawn characters, Birdie is a bit of a stereotype. She represents the simple folk, people who are so down-to-earth and unpretentious that they have more insight than the more "sophisticated" people around them.

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

-- Margo decides to give up her acting career and get married. The fact that she can't have both is something easily dismissed when you take the film's age into consideration. And the fact that she feels that a woman isn't "complete" until she's married is a sentiment that holds no weight, considering she's just spent the last two hours proving otherwise. No, the main problem with Margo's announcement is its timing; it's jarring in its convenience. It also robs the movie of some of its potential drama, allowing her best friend, Karen Richards (Celeste Holm), off the hook for an earlier act of disloyalty.

-- An arrangement made between the critic Addison De Witt (George Sanders) and Eve is either sops to audiences wanting "happy" endings or concessions to the Production Code mentality that demanded some kind of justice prevail. Eve gets the career she wanted, but she doesn't get away scott-free, finding herself tied to the sleazy De Witt.

At one point during a party sequence, director Bill Sampson (Gary Merrill) makes remarks how few people want to rise up through the ranks the old-fashioned way. Although Bill may not realize it, his comment is particularly pointed considering that Eve and Casswell (Marilyn Monroe) are sitting nearby. Casswell is the type of person who uses her "personal charms" to curry favour, while Eve, although possessing talent, spends far too much time and energy looking for shortcuts. Although a very critical look at the theatre — few of the characters come off looking good — this scene demonstrates that All About Eve is an indirect celebration of both talent and its honest application.

Shameless self-promotion: Martian War Machine