The LA Times had an article the other day bemoaning that there has not been a hit comedy at the box office and that there were hopes that "Tag" would be it (pun intended). After all, "Tag" has an all star cast led by Ed Helms, Jon Hamm, Isla Fisher and Jeremy Renner, among others, and a hook of an idea based on ten guys who have played tag for 30 years. Unfortunately, there isn't enough of a story there and the script illustrates that weakness, resulting in a predictable plot that is mostly devoid of humor. The scriptwriters attempt to inject emotion and drama in the last 20 minutes, but everything falls flat. Five friends: Hoagie (Helms), Callahan (Hamm), Randy (Jake Johnson), Sable (Hannibal Buress) and Jerry (Renner) began a tradition in boyhood that they have maintained through the intervening years. Every May is 'tag month' and, despite living in different cities, they travel all over in pursuit of passing on the 'it' mantle to someone else. There are ground rules, but they can be amended. Four of the five are close but Jerry, who has never been tagged, remains aloof, isolated by his untagged status. But, on the occasion of his wedding to Susan (Leslie Bibb), Jerry may be vulnerable.
Some of the early scenes relating their convoluted attempts to tag Jerry and his equally amazing success at avoiding being touched are cute, but with the inertness of the story that follows, these scenes prove to be filler. And Isla Fisher, as Hoagie's wife is shrill and aggressive and about as funny as a soggy piece of toast. Hamm and Renner are suave, but that's not enough. The trailer did a good job of pulling me into the theater. But "Tag" would have made a better documentary.
No comments:
Post a Comment