Tag Blu Ray Review (Warner Bros)

Tag is a 2018 comedy film directed by Jeff Tomsic (This Is Not Happening, Comedy Underground with Dave Attell, Idiotsitter, & The Detour). This is Jeff Tomsic’s feature film directing debut. It’s written by Rob McKittrick (Waiting… & Still Waiting…) & Mark Steilen (The Settlement & Shameless). It’s based on a true story that was published in The Wall Street Journal in 2013. It was originally developed for Will Ferrell & Jack Black but both left the project. The first Warner Bros. film released after the parent company; Time Warner, had been acquired by AT&T & subsequently renamed to WarnerMedia. Despite the acquisition, this is the last film in which the byline placed under WB & New Line’s logo reads “A TimeWarner Company”. It had a budget of 28 million & it grossed $77.7 million at the box office worldwide.

Hogan “Hoagie” Malloy (played by: Ed Helms from The Hangover Trilogy, The Office, Vacation, & Wer’e the Millers), Bob Callahan (played by: Jon Hamm from MadMen, The Town, Baby Driver, & Keeping Up with the Joneses), Randy “Chilli” Cilliano (played by: Jake Johnson from Jurassic World, The Mummy, Drinking Buddies, & Let’s be Cops), Kevin Sable (played by: Hannibal Buress from Blockers, The Disaster Artist, Neighbors 1/2, & The Nice Guys) & Jerry Pierce (played by: Jeremy Renner from Captain America: Civil War, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, The Avengers / Age of Ultron, & The Bourne Legacy) have been playing tag since they were nine years old during the month of May. Since then, the group’s main rule of the game is that the last one tagged is “it,” until next season. They have all grown up & drifted away from a each other a little bit especially Jerry. Wall Street Journal reporter Rebecca Crosby (played by: Annabelle Wallis from Annabelle, Annabelle: Creation, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, & Peaky Blinders) decides to cover their story. Hoagie’s wife Anna (played by: Isla Fisher from Wedding Crashers, Arrested Development, Now You See Me, & The Lookout) is there to support & help her husband during the game but she’s not officially allowed to play due to the rules. They arrive at their hometown of Spokane, Washington & locate Jerry at the local country club he will be getting married at. They meet his fiancee Susan (played by: Leslie Bibb from Iron Man 1/2, Talladega Nights, Law Abiding Citizen, & Trick ‘r Treat) & learn why they weren’t invited to the wedding. They agree to not play the game at any wedding-related events in exchange for invitations to the wedding. Bob & Chilli’s high school crush Cheryl (played by: Rashida Jones from Angie Tribeca, Parks and Recreation, The Office, & I Love You, Man) gets invited to distract both of them from the game. This causes problems between the group instantly. They start to fall apart as Jerry continues to be the best at the game. Can they finally Tag Jerry or will he survive another round as the undefeated champion of Tag????

It’s CRAZY that Tag is actually based off a true story. At first, I was suspicious about that claim but it’s definitely real. These dudes really took that game serious & had a blast with it. It has a great cast which includes so many names that you will recognize from other work & a well written script that makes this comedy stand out compared to most that’s been released recently. The chemistry between the leads were perfect in this & you really felt like they have been friends all these years. Each character had their own unique personality. It actually gets a little serious at the end & it proves how much investment you got into them after viewing their wild experience. It’s one of my favorite films that I seen in theaters this year & I check out something almost every weekend so that’s saying something! Tag is one of funniest & most entertaining comedies that I’ve seen in a long time. There’s never a dull moment here & it has a nice pace to it. As for a replay value, I personally think it’s one of those features that gets better with each viewing. If you are looking for some fun, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND Tag for your next purchase or rental!!!!

Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Warner Bros! This 1080p (2.39:1) transfer is top notch & one of the best looking comedies that I’ve seen in a long time! All of the gags & locations look great here. It has 5 different  audio tracks which include English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1, Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1, & English: Dolby Digital 5.1 on the release. It’s a real solid track & it kicks in during the game. Those hilarious moments are amped up on this. The soundtrack is great & it’s the highlight here! It really adds to the overall production. It also has English SDH, French, Portuguese, & Spanish subtitles.

Let’s discuss the special features on this blu ray disc! “Meet the Real Tag Brothers” is a little over 5 minutes. You get to see the men who inspired this story & film. It has interviews with them with clips from the production. It also has real life Tag footage from them. They chat about how everything got set up for this. Some of the same footage is used towards the end of the feature. 8 “Deleted Scenes” that run a little over 6 minutes. “Gag Reel” is almost 9 minutes & it’s pretty fun to watch. You also get a DVD copy of the release, a Digital Code, & a slipcover. It’s available everywhere right now, check it out!!!!