Tag (Review)
Tag Reminds Us “We Don’t Stop Playing Because We Grow Old; We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing”
I’ll admit that when I first heard about Tag, it brought back a wave of unpleasant memories of Truth or Dare. After all, they are both named after children’s games. Luckily though Tag is as far as you can get from the Blumhouse disaster that hit theaters earlier in 2018 (don’t worry Blumhouse managed to redeem themselves). Tag actually manages to be a warm-hearted film about how important it is to stay connected to the people you love.
Tag is based on a true story about a bunch of grown men who have been playing the game for over thirty years. At the end of the film we get a look at the real guys who the film is inspired by, but fortunately for audiences, they’re replaced with the likes of Jon Hamm, Ed Helms, Jake Johnson, Hannibal Buress, and Jeremy Renner. Right off the bat, I have to mention what brilliant casting this is. All of the actors in this film have shined as part of ensemble casts in television and film before and they manage to share that same brilliant chemistry together. There’s no battling for the spotlight, instead, it feels very much like a bunch of old friends getting together for one last hurrah. This brilliant casting becomes the very backbone for the film and the reason for its success.
Everyone has that one friend who is competitive to the point where they almost alienate themselves from the group. The friend who defines themselves in their victory and don’t really know what they would be if they ever lost. In Tag, this is Jeremy Renner who manages some absolutely spectacular sequences where he outfoxes his childhood buddies attempting to finally tag him. Renner’s experience as an action star manages to translate perfectly to this comedy film, and his cocky attitude manages to make him the villain without actually letting the audience get to the point of hating him. However, Tag is much more than just a film about the game it’s named after. While Renner might have made himself the best at the game who ever lived, he pushes all of his friends away in his quest. They don’t hate him and he certainly doesn’t hate them, but there’s a clear division in the group between the winner and the loser. This element speaks to the very basic dynamic of male bonding. We like to be around those we can relate to, so how do losers bond with a winner?
The answer to that is that Tag starts off just being about the game and their last time playing with each other. The losers mission is to tag him just once so that he doesn’t go out undefeated. Of course, that manages to make their bond all the stronger while Renner remains an outsider. However, it’s not all just because of the friends united against his character. Renner goes a bit too far at times to avoid becoming one of them. Like I said earlier he defines himself as the bad guy in the context of the film but doesn’t take it far enough to make audiences hate him.
The chemistry between the protagonists of Tag is what makes the film so delightful. Helms has plenty of experience when it comes to group comedy films (the Hangover franchise), along with Jake Johnson (New Girl), and Hamm is having a pretty good year using his charm to win over audiences. Of them all though, I found Buress to be the most fun in Tag. He’s always been an anchor when it comes to group dynamics and Tag is no exception. He even manages to toss in a few sly references to Broad City in the film. These four friends might have much to them as far as their characters go, but that’s because director Jeff Tomsic recognizes the talent he has and lets the actors own natural charisma define the characters they are playing.
A recurring theme of Tag is the age-old quote “We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing” (which they constantly attribute incorrectly to Ben Franklin). The film sticks to this theme to a point where I actually became nostalgic about going out and doing stupid things with my own childhood friends halfway through it. It’s a feel-good movie about those close bonds and friendships we all develop over the years. While it might be a movie about playing and growing old, I think the real message is about making sure you keep the people who are important to you in your life. It’s so easy to let things fall to the wayside in these fast-paced times we live in, but Tag reminds us all that if someone is important to you, you make the time for them and never sit around waiting for them to make the first move.
Tag is far from a perfect film, but it’s one that manages to bring up a lot of feel-good moments. It’s a movie that knows what it is and embraces its strong points because of that. Tag won’t be on any best of 2018 movie lists and won’t win any accolades when award season comes around, but going to the movies is so much more than seeing the films we “should be seeing.” It’s about getting away from it all and feeling a little bit better (or feeling anything at all really). In this regard, Tag is a complete success. One that I know a lot of men my age will really enjoy. If you think Tag might be the kind of movie for you, then you’re probably absolutely right and should make the time to see it. Hell, you might even want to take some old friends with you.
