This post was written by Hatchet Reporter Kathryn Beard.
The good news: the outtakes running over the closing credits of “Date Night” are hilarious. Steve Carell and Tina Fey mock fellow diners at a fancy restaurant, producing take after take of genius one-liners. The bad news: the outtakes are the funniest part of “Date Night,” the newest comedy from director Shawn Levy (“Night at the Museum”).
The concept is simple: a bored, suburban couple venture into the big city to escape the tired cycle of book club, soccer practices and unsatisfying careers. Their restaurant of choice, Claw, is the hippest new downtown eatery and without a reservation, Fey and Carell resort to thievery to finagle their way into the upscale establishment. With someone else’s reservation in hand, the couple soon find themselves mistaken for the Triplehorns, who are being chased by a pair of threatening thugs. High jinks ensue and Fey and Carell are subsequently pursued all around Manhattan.
Carell and Fey are some of the funniest people on TV today. Carell, who portrays clueless paper exec Michael Scott on “The Office,” here plays Phil Foster, a clueless accountant fed up with his monotonous existence. Fey, the neurotic TV producer Liz Lemon on “30 Rock,” here plays Claire Foster, a neurotic mother of two struggling to balance her career, motherhood and her social life. The characters the comedians made famous on television eerily resemble their characters in the new film. It is simply too difficult to separate Michael Scott and Liz Lemon from the Fosters.
When given the opportunity to showcase their comedic talents and their improv abilities, both actors succeed in providing entertaining gags and jokes. A particularly funny dance routine in a strip club highlights both of their abilities to commit to a scene as they gyrate, swing on and lick the stripper pole. Throughout the rest of the movie, however, the actors seem bogged down by the unfunny one-liners that make up the script and the limiting nature of the plot itself. From the mad dash through Central Park to the high speed chase, the story doesn’t seem original or fun. Even Carell and Fey seem a little bored.
The film is saved by amusing cameos by celebrities who, unlike the principal actors, seem willing to make fun of themselves and the film in which they are starring. Mark Wahlburg plays Holbrooke, a chiseled security expert who spends the entirety of the film shirtless. Also making an appearance are Mila Kunis and James Franco, reuniting after their ingenious Funny or Die skits mocking the show “The Hills.” Playing a bickering couple on the run with the ridiculous names of Whippit and Taste, the two humorously mock their feelings of young love and their drugged up existence.
Most of the film still focuses on Fey and Carell and their drawn out trek through the Big Apple to find an elusive USB drive possibly containing photos of a random politician. Fey and Carell have already established themselves as genius comedians with successful television and film careers. “Date Night” is unfortunately a creative setback in both of their careers, but the hilarity of the aforementioned outtakes proves that both will rise again to entertain the masses.
