“Tag” opening this weekend; July 15, is based on a true story. When we think of movies based on true stories we think back to movies based on harrowing real-life events or as a clever way to draw people into a horror film. True stories are not often found in comedies, but in this case that is exactly what you will see if you find yourself in a seat to watch this comedy. “Tag” is centered on a long-standing friendship between Brian Dennehy and his 9 friends who began playing a game of tag in high school and mostly never stopped. Their relationship and timeline of events was shared in 2013 in The Wall Street Journal.
23 Year Old Game of Tag Youtube Screen Capture
One of his friends, Joe Tombari, was almost “it” for life when he failed to tag someone on the list day of school back in 1982. It was indeed the end of the game for the group for a long time as they went their separate ways in life, but a reunion about 8 years later led to the game starting back up again once more and this time a Tag Participation Agreement to play during the entire month of February and the whomever was “it” at the end of the month holds the title of “it” until the following February. The contract was drafted up by friend, Patrick Schultheis who was a first-year lawyer at the time.
In one real life event, Sean Raftis once flew all the way to Seattle in order to tag Tombari by curling up in the trunk of a car and springing out at him unexpectedly. The plan worked, but his friend’s wife ended up being a casualty when she tripped off of the sidewalk due to the scare. It’s a good thing that all of their partners are good-natured about the game and even get involved in the sting operations.”
23 Year Old Game of Tag Youtube Screen Capture
One scene in the trailer that moviegoers may suspect is fabricated is very much based on real life. Yes, one of the guys tagged someone at their father’s funeral, and according to Tombari, it remains one of the game’s most memorable moments. He explained to The Guardian, “Perhaps one of the most unexpected tags was during Mike’s father’s funeral. During the service, he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to find Joe mouthing, ‘You’re it.’ Afterwards, he said his father would have approved, because he found our game hilarious.”
While it may seem outlandish to think that a group of middle-aged men kept one game of tag going for more than two decades; at the heart of their commitment is a dedication to keeping their close bond alive. Now that they’ve spread out across the country, gotten married, started careers, and had kids, seeing each other isn’t as easy as it once was, but for one month out of the year, they never know when an old friend might pop out of a bush to surprise them — literally.
As Tombari said in his interview,
“The best thing about the game is that it has kept us in touch over all these years — it forces us to meet and has formed a strong bond between us, almost like brothers. How many [40-somethings] can say they still see nine friends they went to school with? We joke that we’ll still be playing in our retirement homes. I plan to use a wheelchair instead of a Zimmer frame, because it’s faster.”
If the movie can capture the spirit of the friendship that exists between its real-life inspirations, then “Tag” can become one of the Summer’s sweetest and most laughable films.
Actual Documentary Video
Tag Movie Trailer
