“Date Night”

Nothing like a night on the town to spice up your marriage.

Especially one that involves gunplay, running for your life -- and stealing a reservation at the hottest restaurant in Manhattan.

Such are the stakes in "Date Night," a comic thriller that gets most of its comedy from stars Steve Carell and Tina Fey -- and most of its thrills from nowhere at all.

Yet another plunge-into-danger, mistaken-identity romp, "Date Night" hinges on the fact that the New Jersey suburbanites at its center aren't exactly used to living on the edge.

These days, neither are movie audiences, who must take their laughs where they can find them.

So must such talents as Carell and Fey, who trade the sly wit of their TV showcases ("The Office" and "30 Rock," respectively) for a movie that can't quite decide whether it wants to be slapstick or satire when it grows up.

In the beginning, it's satire, as "Date Night" outlines the staid-but-crazed life of Claire and Phil Foster (Fey, Carell).

He's a tax attorney. She's a real estate agent -- one who's having trouble moving McMansions these days, even at deep-discount prices.

With two rambunctious kids, they hardly have any alone time -- except for their weekly date night, which generally involves a visit to the local steakhouse, followed by an exhausted collapse into bed. To sleep.

Not that either seems to mind -- until they discover that their friends (blink-and-you'll-miss-'em Mark Ruffalo and Kristen Wiig) are pulling the plug on a marriage in which they feel like roommates. Perfectly matched roommates, but roommates just the same.

Which prompts Claire, on their next date night, to dress up for a night to remember. Phil, in turn, impulsively suggests they skip the steakhouse and venture into Manhattan to splurge at an uber-trendy restaurant.

Alas, by the time they arrive, there are no tables available. (And there will never be any tables available for the likes of them.)

But they get an inspiration while being ignored at the bar: Why not take the reservation of the couple not responding to the imperious hostess' summons?

Sure they get a table, but they also get a possibly lethal case of mistaken identity when two gun-toting goons (Common, Jimmi Simpson) drag them outside and demand a computer flash drive supposedly stolen from a cranky mobster (played, inevitably, by Ray Liotta).

Thus begins the Fosters' frantic run for their lives.

Naturally, said run takes them uptown, downtown, all around the town, where they encounter -- among others -- a no-nonsense cop (sassy Taraji P. Henson, who'd fit right into "Law & Order's" ever-rotating cast), a crusading district attorney with seriously kinky tastes (a diverting William Fichtner) and a fiercely offbeat couple (hilariously dim James Franco and Mila Kunis) who warn them how deep the doo-doo they've stepped in truly is.

Fortunately, Claire has a former client who might be able to help them make it through the night: international security expert Holbrooke Grant (played with deadpan humor by none other than Mr. Sexy Pecs himself, Mark Wahlberg), whose permanently shirtless presence drives Claire into a flirtatious flutter -- and Phil into a jealous rage.

Could it be because, while their continued survival is in question, Phil and Claire suddenly remember what really makes their lives worth living?

Yes, folks, somewhere between the flying bullets and the flying-fender car crashes, screenwriter Josh Klausner (whose credits include two "Shrek" sequels) sneaks in some serious stuff -- which brings "Date Night" to a shrieking halt every time Carell and Fey have to downshift their high-revving comedic engines.

Yet Klausner also manages to sneak in a few snide running jokes that maintain the movie's light-hearted tone -- especially the universally horrified reaction to stealing someone else's restaurant reservation, which prompts far more revulsion than such minor matters as bribery and political corruption.

As for director Shawn Levy (whose credits range from the painful "Pink Panther" remake to "Night at the Museum" and its sequel), he's far more comfortable with action rather than acting.

Consequently, he keeps "Date Night" running at a breathless, breakneck pace, hoping that all the perpetual motion might divert audiences from the movie's numerous lapses in logic.

Lucky for him -- and lucky for us -- that "Date Night" has such nimble performers to lead us on their merry chase.

Stuck in an essentially by-the-numbers movie, Carell and Fey bring both comic spark and genuine humanity to their characters. We not only laugh at them, we care about them.

Because there's never any suspense as to whether Phil and Claire will make it through their "Date Night," it's a tribute to Carell and Fey's individual flair -- and collective chemistry -- that we're willing to stick around and see how they do it.

Contact movie critic Carol Cling at ccling@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0272.