Every time Steve Carell’s character accomplishes something in “Evan Almighty,” he does a little dance to celebrate. It is one of the awkward moments that Mr. Carell excels at depicting. All the other characters watch uncomfortably as this transpires, some of them occasionally join him. The dance plays such a large role in the film that shots of the entire cast trying it out roll under the final credits in one of those hilarious montages designed to keep audiences in their seats for a few extra moments. The problem is that, like much of this potentially lucrative comedic sequel to 2003’s “Bruce Almighty,” the dance isn’t funny.

But “Evan Almighty” is the sort of film that is less concerned with hilarity than hitting all of its demographics. Its predecessor was a forgettable Jim Carrey vehicle that managed to earn $242 million domestically. Shaving some of the more sacrilegious elements from that film, finding a more likable lead actor, and weighting the script with a politically correct message, Universal Pictures is confident that the sequel — in name only — will surpass the profits of its predecessor.

The studio has so much faith in its star’s ability to find the charm in embarrassing cinematic moments and the desperation of Christian audiences for family-friendly fare that it allowed the film to balloon $121 million over budget.

Hollywood has been trying its best to capitalize on the Christian market ever since “The Passion of the Christ” defied critics to become box office gold. “Bruce Almighty” may have been a fluke, but director Tom Shadyac has had proven success bringing God to the big screen, and Universal is banking on that.

The strongest weapon in Mr. Shadyac’s arsenal is Mr. Carell, whose face in the advertisements legitimizes what looks like a straightto-video spin-off. Mr. Carell’s character was a small but scene stealing presence in “Bruce Almighty.” Since then, the comedian’s ability to turn uncomfortable encounters into endearing moments has shot him to stardom.

Scoring the lead in “Evan Almighty” might come as a mixed blessing, though. Glancing at his stellar track record, Mr. Carell appears to share Johnny Depp’s skill for improving any film he’s in with an innovative and amusing performance. But “Evan Almighty” is not his “Pirates of the Caribbean.” Mr. Carell is cast as a modern-day Noah, but the abuse he takes at the hands of his director appears a closer parallel to Job’s travails.

As the film opens, Evan Baxter (Bruce’s colleague in “Bruce Almighty”) leaves his job as a local news anchor for a seat in Congress. The abuse Mr. Carrey subjected him to in the original film is nothing compared to what is in store for him here.

Not long after Evan, who has promised in his campaign to “change the world,” arrives in Washington to get started, he receives a visit from God (Morgan Freeman, reprising his role), who has taken Evan’s promise literally and expects him to build an ark and save the world.

Evan balks at the plan, so God proceeds to play tricks on him, one of which is to physically turn him into Noah. This appears to be a means of subjecting Mr. Carell to abundant hair-grooming sight gags and prolonged hits to the groin.

Mr. Carell handles all of the abuse with aplomb, but the scenes lack the integral element that made him famous — humor. The comedian does his best to survive the hoops, hurdles, and low-blows sent his way, but unlike his performances in other films, these scenes are not enhancements to the plot. They are the plot. Evan may have been chosen by God to save the world from an evil federal bill that will ruin a national park, but the filmmakers take much more pleasure in openly mocking him than getting bogged down in theological detail.

Mr. Carell is supported by a cast of strong actors who provide nuanced deliveries of jokes with no punch line. Wanda Sykes and Jonah Hill, in particular, have prepared themselves to deliver nothing as Evan’s congressional aides; Lauren Graham takes on the thankless role of his beleaguered wife; John Goodman is the evil congressman who puts business ahead of the environment, and the comedienne Molly Shannon provides supposed comedic relief as the humorous real estate agent without a single laugh line.

But it is Mr. Freeman who holds down the fort, perfectly delivering the meaningless platitudes of Hollywood God. Scratching the smiting that was a trademark in the original Noah parable, Evan’s God says that miracles are “random acts of kindness” — and has returned to Earth to save but one national forest.

Who knew? God, creator — and destroyer — of all life, has come back as a Greenpeace environmentalist. Apparently He didn’t have the time to hand out bumper stickers and collect signatures to pass the proper federal legislation to halt those crazy developers. But filling an ark with pairs of all the creatures that roam the Earth was a good fall-back plan.

It may be no small irony that the film’s politically correct message and attempts to offset its carbon imprint have been rewarded with a boycott from PETA for supposedly mistreating the myriad exotic animals that fill the ark. (This is an especially unfortunate turn of events considering that the painstaking, and expensive, attempts to include the animals comes off looking computer-generated, anyway.)

Thanks to this futile attempt to realistically depict all of God’s creatures, “Evan Almighty” is the most expensive comedy ever made. It might pay off at the box office, but this feel-good, quasi-Hebrew Bible attempt to bring God back to Hollywood fails to deliver its miracle.

mkeane@nysun.com