Tag (2018 Film)

''Tag'' is a 2018 American comedy film directed by Jeff Tomsic (in his feature directorial debut) and written by Rob McKittrick and Mark Steilen. The film is based on a true story that was published in ''The Wall Street Journal'' about a group of men, played by Ed Helms, Jake Johnson, Hannibal Buress, Jon Hamm, and Jeremy Renner, who had spent one month each year playing the same game of tag since their childhood. Annabelle Wallis, Isla Fisher, Rashida Jones, and Leslie Bibb also star.

The film was released June 15, 2018, by Warner Bros. Pictures. It received positive to mixed reviews from critics and grossed $78 million worldwide against a production budget of $28 million.

Plot

Hogan "Hoagie" Malloy, Bob Callahan, Randy "Chilli" Cilliano, Kevin Sable, and Jerry Pierce have been playing tag since 1983 during the month of May, with Jerry the only one who has not been tagged. Hoagie recruits Bob, Chilli, and Kevin for one last attempt to tag Jerry, telling them that Jerry plans to retire after this year's game because of his upcoming marriage. Rebecca Crosby, a ''Wall Street Journal'' reporter, decides to write an article on the friends. They are also accompanied by Hoagie's wife Anna.

Once in their hometown, the group locate Jerry and attempt to tag him but are overwhelmed by his skill. He introduces his fiancée Susan. The others agree to not play the game at wedding-related events in exchange for invitations to the wedding.

Despite this, the group makes several attempts to tag Jerry, but come up short, with one of the attempts leaving Hoagie, Chilli, and Kevin in traps set by Jerry. During the rehearsal dinner, Susan confides to the guys that she is pregnant.

Defeated, the group try to build a new plan. After finding out Jerry attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, they decide to strike his next meeting, which is on his wedding day. They make their move and almost tag Jerry, but he retreats to the communion wine storage. Jerry and the guys stay there for hours, until Susan comes by with the wedding just a few hours away. She berates him for risking their wedding for a childish game, then suddenly appears to have a miscarriage, so he comes out to help. Chilli is convinced that it is a ruse, but Jerry insists he is not playing around and the couple leaves.

The guys receive texts that the wedding is postponed due to the potential miscarriage. However, they see a post from a bridesmaid of Susan in her dress, showing that the wedding is still on schedule. Incensed by the trick, the gang decide to crash the wedding. Upon their arrival, Susan confirms the hoax, including the pregnancy. Angry at Jerry for lying, Hoagie decides to tag him at the end of the ceremony after he and Susan kiss. He charges at Jerry and ends up tackling the pastor to the ground and loses consciousness. Anna confirms that his condition is serious and calls for an ambulance.

Everyone meets up at the hospital, where Hoagie tells them he had lied about Jerry quitting after the season because he wanted to reunite with his friends after he himself recently discovered a tumor on his liver; he feared he might not be alive for the following year and was heartbroken at possibly dying without seeing Jerry get tagged.

Jerry allows Hoagie to tag him out of pity. The group starts the game again and changes the rules so Anna and Rebecca can play as well.

Before the credits roll, video clips and a photograph are displayed of the real group of ten men that inspired the film, who continue to play. During the credits, Jerry finally gets tagged.

Cast

Production

The film is based on a real-life group of friends from Spokane, Washington, known for playing a month-long game of tag every February over a 28-year period, governed by a contract written by Patrick J. Schultheis. The group was profiled in ''The Wall Street Journal'' in January 2013, after which they began receiving offers to adapt their story into a film. They sold the rights to their story the next month. It was initially developed with Will Ferrell and Jack Black in mind; however, both eventually left the project.

By March 2016, Ferrell and Black were no longer attached to the project, Jeff Tomsic was set to direct the film, and Ed Helms and Tracy Morgan were cast. In April 2017, Jeremy Renner and Hannibal Buress joined the cast. Morgan then left the project due to scheduling conflict issues. In May, Jake Johnson and Annabelle Wallis were cast. Jon Hamm, Isla Fisher and Rashida Jones were cast in June, with filming due to begin in Atlanta, Georgia, later in the month, specifically on June 23, with casting for extras issued. Leslie Bibb was added to the cast as filming began on June 20.

Principal photography began in June 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. In July 2017, Jeremy Renner fractured his right elbow and left wrist after falling while performing a stunt. He ended up performing the stunt a second time before going to the hospital, and the production team used CGI to remove his casts in post-production.

Reception

Box office

''Tag'' grossed $54.7 million in the United States and Canada, and $23.4 million in other territories, for a total worldwide gross of $78.1 million, against a production budget of $28 million.

In the United States and Canada, ''Tag'' was released on June 15, 2018, alongside ''Incredibles 2'', and was projected to gross $12–16 million from 3,382 theaters in its opening weekend. The film made $1.3 million from Thursday night previews, similar to the $1 million made by fellow R-rated comedy '' Game Night'' the previous February, and $5.4 million on its first day. It went on to open to $14.9 million, finishing third at the box office, a figure ''Deadline Hollywood'' said "isn't bad, isn't good, it's OK" considering its $28 million production cost. It dropped 45% to $8.5 million in its second weekend, finishing fourth, and $5.6 million in its third weekend, finishing sixth.

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 55% based on 203 reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critical consensus reads, "For audiences seeking a dose of high-concept yet undemanding action comedy, ''Tag'' might be close enough to it." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 56 out of 100, based on reviews from 35 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it a 78% overall positive score.

Peter Debruge of ''Variety'' magazine wrote: "Tag leaves audiences energized and, dare I say, inspired, having delivered all that outrageousness...in service of what ultimately amounts to a sincere celebration of lasting human connections."
A. O. Scott of ''The New York Times'' wrote: "Tag, unlike too many of its recent ilk, at least bothers to be a movie, rather than a television sketch distended to feature length. The performers don't seem to have been shoved in front of the camera and instructed to be funny. They have to work for their laughs, and to find coherence as an ensemble."

Jon Frosch of ''The Hollywood Reporter'' called the film "neither bad nor good, but rather, despite its out-there story, almost numbingly ordinary: an easy, breezy action-com that's sometimes amusing but rarely funny, competent rather than inspired."

Home media

''Tag'' was released on digital copy on August 17, 2018, and on DVD and Blu-ray on August 28, 2018.

References

External links

Official website
(archived)
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2018 films
2018 directorial debut films
2010s buddy comedy films
2018 black comedy films
American black comedy films
American buddy comedy films
American films about cannabis
Films directed by Jeff Tomsic
Films scored by Germaine Franco
Films about alcoholism
Films about cancer in the United States
Films about divorce
Films about friendship
Films about games
Films about journalists
Films about marriage
Films about weddings in the United States
Comedy films based on actual events
Films set in 1983
Films set in 2013
Films set in Colorado
Films set in Portland, Oregon
Films set in Washington (state)
Films shot in Washington (state)
Midlife crisis films
New Line Cinema films
Warner Bros. films
2010s English-language films
2010s American films
English-language black comedy films
English-language buddy comedy films