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‘Tag’ is a film that will make you both laugh and cry.  Myself, coming from a background of two different groups of very close friends, staying connected is extremely important.  Even with its ‘Hangover’ style antics, ’Tag’ will be quite resonant with people who have their “boys” that they have stayed connected with for the majority of their lives, and this movie has that impact on people whom share that similarity.  The first thing I noticed was the amazing soundtrack of the film, from the opening moments, you can tell that whoever picked these songs, knew what they were doing.  Even seeing the trailer alone, you think you can tell the type of film this will be, but it’s a bit different. (And luckily the trailer doesn’t give away all the best parts of the film)

The entire cast meshes well together, and there are some interesting rules to the “game” that aren’t covered in the previews.  The trailers would have you believe that this group of friends is constantly attempting to tag one another, but there is a bit of intricate teamwork involved.  Team members tag each other on purpose in order to achieve a common goal. Their specific rules aren’t expressly stated at first, but as the film moves along, you figure out the specificity of the rules.

The movie isn’t without its loose ends and unfinished plot points however.  Rashida Jones’s character is a welcomed inclusion to the cast, but her storyline has no real end, or consequence.  To speak on the end of the movie in general, there are quite a few points that are never tied up.  A bar tender dying to get into the game, is just never touched upon after a certain point, and there are several ‘Breaking and Entering’ situations that just seem to have NO consequence whatsoever.

Following the film’s conclusion, there are several shots of the real people involved in the game, which are AMAZING.  I highly recommend staying for the end credits.  (There’s a bit with an old woman that is in the film, but seeing the actual incident in real life is much more gratifying).  One of the two stand out stars of the film is Hannibal Buress, who you would wish had more to say in the film, but his lines, are simply one-liner jokes that help make the film as funny as it is. The other is Isla Fisher, (who I just realized that I have a strange crush on).  But her character Anna is a person who you wish would play the game with the guys, and when she’s able to, she is quite the competitor.  

Another interesting bit is Jermey Renner, and his ability to evade his friends, using a Sherlock Holmes style mental process (The Robert Downey Jr. version) he can predict whenever he’s about to be potentially tagged.  This leads to some creative and interesting action sequences.  We KNOW from the film that the physical training from “The Avengers” is part of the reason Renner is able to do the things that he can do in the movie, much like Keaunu Reeves had the training for John Wick, because of the Matrix.  But a number of Renners evasion techniques are quite impressive. 

Aside from some certain plot points that are crucial to the story-line that never come to fruition, the film is quite good. There are extra players that you never see, and the main purpose of the majority of the plot is for one character is write an article on the entire story, but you never hear anything about it when the film wraps up. There is also an interaction between two characters, that would be quite funny, but you never see anything of it.

Although this story is based on real life, there is a “dead baby” joke (and thats in quotations for a reason). But that just sort of fades away after a while, which would NEVER happen between friends.  However this script, movie, and over arching story is a good one, filled with hilarity and depth that one wouldn’t expect.  It is very much worth seeing, and the giant crowd of critics that clapped and cheered at the movies’ end would agree.