Date Night

The premise of this film is nothing new. A suburban couple, set in their ways, decide to head to the big city to spice up things up and meet with disaster. What redeems this otherwise average fish-out-of-water romcom is its heavyweight comedy stars.

Tina Fey and Steve Carell excel as Claire and Phil Foster, a working duo with kids, full time jobs and no time for each other. They are stuck in a rut, eating at the same restaurant on their weekly date night. When friends announce that they are getting a divorce because they have become ‘excellent roommates’, Phil suggests that he takes Claire to Manhattan in a bid to be romantic.

Inevitably when they get to the restaurant, lauded as the coolest place in the city to go, there are no tables left so they steal someone else’s reservation. This develops into a rather routine case of mistaken identity and the rest of the plot sees Claire and Phil running round the city trying to evade the bad guys.

With different stars this would be an extremely clichéd and pedestrian film but Fey and Carell manage to lift the plot with some fantastic one liners, decent physical comedy and a believable romantic relationship. It is their performances that entice you in, make you laugh and keep you watching until the end.

Stalwarts of American comedy, Carell and Fey command the big screen and have clearly improvised lines that were better than those in the original script. It’s worth staying for the outtakes at the end just to see how much input the pair must have had.

Fortunately as well director Shaun Levy, also responsible for Night at the Museum, keeps the pace up with some ridiculous car chases and plenty of other action. Although there’s nothing revolutionary in this movie the couple get up to enough amusing and dramatic exploits to keep your eyes on the screen.

It’s also worth noting that the supporting cast are great at breathing life into the rather hackneyed plot. Mark Wahlberg sends himself up as a bare chested lothario who also happens to be a computer whizz, helping the Fosters to evade capture. Meanwhile James Franco and Mila Kunis steal one scene as the “Tripplehorns”, the couple whose reservation Phil and Claire stole. Their argument over nipple clamps makes for one of the most memorable events of the movie.

A special mention should also go to William Fichtner who plays a corrupt and wonderfully perverse district attorney who will have you laughing and cringing in equal measures.

Date Night is not a film that breaks new ground. While it further proves the comedic talents of Fey and Carell it won’t be remembered as a classic. These two however make a great pair and a future collaboration (with a better script) would be more than welcome.

Last edited: 25th April 2010