With an opening sequence that tops 'Suicide Club" in shock value, aesthetics and eeriness, "Tag" targets a gore-hungry audience, but goes deeper with the many philosophical and psychological themes of determinism, power, fear, reality and identity.
"Tag" tackles greater issues than most films and does so well with a brisk pace that takes the viewer along the joyride (or hellride depending on how you see it) and makes him/her identify with the lead character's distress. The three leads who play the same persona are very well cast and effective in edging us into our seats. Their acting is grounded while the rest of the movie is often over the top at parts.
The daring premise, edgy editing, themes and tones are strong, yet Sono falls slightly short of his best work by making a clearly uneven piece at times with some easy thrills and instances with little coherence or content sneaking in. He proves showy, self-indulgent, eager to please the crowd and even uses questionable short-cuts instead of going deeper into the surreal, suspenseful and sublime narrative.
We are left with many questions like many of Sono's films, but in this case, we also understand that perhaps he could have asked himself more questions in the making in order to overcome some unwanted extraneous confusion and loss of focus. This is especially troublesome as it clocks less than 90 mins (uncharacteristic for long-winded Sono - see 237 mins "Love Exposure" as extreme example) and still shows some filler farce instead of sure hit fire-power.
Some superficial moments over subtlety and substance holds this film back, but the brute force and fantastic screen-writing and directing defy denying this fresh film its place into the pantheon of path-breaking provocative piece of cinema.
Despite its minor and more blatant flaws, this film holds well to a metaphorical mirror and is not in search of identity like its main character. It is disconnected beyond its useful purpose, but parades around arguably able to arouse sympathy and separately speak volume on our psychological individual and societal brink of breakdown.
Try to be spontaneous. Accept the surreal and tolerate the slapstick and silliness.
Japan 2015 | 85 mins | FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL | DCP | Japanese (English subtitles)
