Tag: The Assassination Game (1982)

Basically a cross between a slasher film, romantic comedy and drama. The acting is better than in slashers but the script ends up being lacking at times, not enough comedy and the romance angle was largely boring. The biggest draw to the movie and the real reason there is a cult following of sorts (cult following among those who actually saw it) is because of kids or teens who had dart guns and loved the concept of the game being portrayed and in fact this movie inspired the creation of such games. The movie thus should have devoted more to the game itself. It not only would have made it more interesting but also more suspenseful.The killer is revealed within the first 20 minutes. It would have been better if the identity of the killer was not shown so we do not see what the killer looks like. The only time Tag players other than Susan and Gersh appeared was when they were interacting with Susan or Gersh. It would have been nice to see some of the other players making kills. In combination with the killer's identity being secret, or at least the face of each assassin not being shown until after a kill this would have increased the thrill factor because the audience would wonder whether each upcoming kill would be real or fake. Mixing up real and fake kills would have done wonders. Instead there were just 3 players murdered on screen with a total lack of surprise or suspense plus we do not care much about the victims either. With so few murders the movie needed more of the game shown and some suspense. Towards the end it is revealed that Gersh murdered 5 players. Yet only 3 bodies were shown in his room. If the budget and/or time did not permit hiring more actors or showing the other two kills at the very least the movie should have shown Gersh calling Carpenter to report the kills so the audience would be aware of them. The way the reveal played out, many viewers don't even realize these extra two kills supposedly occurred. Another problem is that while the killer has a motive to commit the first murder (to silence the victim) there is no reason to continue killing which for sure will result in getting caught. It is hard to buy that someone snapped so completely over a game even if he has little else in his life. Odd is that while he has no qualms about violating the rules while using a real gun he obeys the time limits, "no shooting after midnight". Compared to some slashers though with the likes of super human freaks nearly impossible to kill this is relatively minor.Another minor issue is that on 2 occasions various players teamed up to get Susan. Why would players team up to get her? If anything you would expect them to team up to get Gersh. Allowing players to team up seems to run counter to the whole spirit as well of each having a target.The love scenes were just plain boring and the retro music corny. The real charm was the game and it simply was not developed as much as it should have been. As in Halloween, music is used extensively to set the mood and try to frighten. There are not enough scary scenes though, and the only thrill is towards the end as the killer is chasing Susan.Action centers mainly around 2 buildings that are Gothic and Romanesque. Props for the choice because they look great on film. Definitely a film that is watchable as long as you take it at face value and accept some parts are slow moving.

The execution of "TAG: The Assassination Game" may be primarily comical and light-headed, the concept is extremely ingenious and would easily lean itself for a harsh and disturbing thriller. It's actually quite regrettable that writer/director Nick Castle (an acolyte of John Carpenter, which is made clear through many details throughout the film) opted for the more comical and all-revealing approach, as you can't help thinking this premise held a lot more potential. "TAG" is the name of a game organized on campus grounds and it's a gigantic hype in universities all across the USA. The participating students dispose of toy guns and receive the profile of another participant together with the assignment to "kill" them. Of course one of the players, who can't stand losing too well, takes the game a little serious and starts taking out his targets with genuine bullets. Most of the film, however, revolves on the game circuit of the lovely Linda Hamilton, as well as on her romance with the school newspaper journalist Robert Carradine), so it takes an awful long while before anyone ever realizes there's a crazed killer on the loose. "TAG" isn't exactly suspenseful, since the identity of the killer is never kept secret and – let's face it – someone going completely bonkers over losing a stupid college game isn't very convincing. There's also a severe lack in body count and the murders themselves aren't very spectacular. Still, it's a fun idea and the film has a few highly memorable moments and eccentric characters, like Carpenter (see the link?); the creep who keeps hold of the score. Linda Hamilton looks beautiful and very sexy in this one, although she smokes like a chimney unfortunately, and it's also the debut film of Bruce Abbott (Re-Animator).

Jaded viewers imposing current film standards and expectations may want to look elsewhere, but if one has an appreciation for 80's movies and other movies of this type and pace, then it's clear that Tag has aged well for what it is. Tag is a dark comedy-thriller that takes place on a college campus during the 1980's. Think of something along the lines of Terror Train (1980 with Jamie Lee Curtis), except with comedy and a tongue in cheek quality to it, at least in the films first half.TAG, The Assassination Game (1982) is a great little film that has gained a strong, though seemingly small fan following over the years. I've watched it many times since I discovered it in the early 80's (after which I got a few people together in my high school so we could hunt each other down with rubber band guns –not recommended). A lot of people simply don't appear to know much about this dark comedy/thriller. Most people who've seen this film give it decent reviews, but the reviews themselves are few and far between. So, here is a little more information about this great flick. The plot is simple. At a college campus the latest pastime is a game called TAG. TAG players are given lists of targets (consisting of other players in the TAG group) that they chase after all over the large college campus with fake plastic suction tipped dart guns. The last man or woman who hasn't been hunted down and successfully tagged in the end, wins. There are a few rules to this campus game (game play stops at 12:00 midnight, etc.), but that's about it. It's all a fun pastime with a chance to meet new people. That is, until things go wrong.The reigning champion (played wonderfully by Bruce Abbott in his first film role) gets so upset over getting tagged and losing that he decides to use real bullets instead and continue on with the game. The movie is a decent paced 80's film with a noir like tongue in cheek quality to it that develops into the dark and serious, contains a fair amount of suspense, and pulls it all off with nice style for a little film. Its ending is serious, but with a wink, and an homage to those noir films of yesteryear. It also shows that gore, tons of violence, etc., is not necessary to make a good thriller. Though I've never seen anything else really like TAG, there are a few other movies that one might like if they like it, such as Silver Streak (1976), and Foul Play (1978). I hope some day TAG gets remastered to DVD. Till then, I guess its out of print VHS tapes. TAG, was written and Directed by Nick Castle. Castle was involved in helping his friend, Director John Carpenter write Escape From New York, and TAG was Castle's first Directing project. Castle would later go on to direct more commercially honed films (for that time period) such as The Last Starfighter, The Boy Who Could Fly, and others. He's still working today. He was also the original man behind the mask in Halloween.Having already been in a number of films before TAG, (most notable to me is The Big Red One as a cigar smoking writer named Pvt. Zab), Robert Carradine appears in Tag as a dashing cigar smoking journalist who falls in love with the movies heroine. After TAG, Carradine went on to do Revenge of the Nerds in 1984 as Lewis Skolnick. He's still active in his long career.Aside from a couple of TV roles and minor work, TAG is Linda Hamilton's first real film. Her role as Sarah Connor in Terminator (1984) was still two years away. One can tell from watching her in TAG that she already had a good grip on her craft. She's beautiful here, and thankfully we would see a lot more of her skill and beauty in the years to come, and still do. (Incidentally, Bruce Abbott apparently did "get" Linda Hamilton in the end after all, in reality that is. They were married from December 19, 1982 till they were divorced in 1989. They had one son together Born October 4, 1989, Dalton Abbott.)

Overall, I thought this movie was OK. Seeing Linda Hamilton in an early role was fun, as was the premise. This movie came out during the height of "assassination" games where you try to "eliminate" someone you've been assigned to, without that person knowing you're after him/her. Of course, someone is looking to eliminate you, too.If you want a fun movie to eat popcorn with, check this one out.