{"id":49669,"date":"2026-09-09T07:18:24","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T07:18:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=49669"},"modified":"2026-09-09T07:18:24","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T07:18:24","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review-tag-the-assassination-game-1982","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=49669","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! Blu-ray Review: TAG: THE ASSASSINATION GAME (1982)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This \u201cStandard Edition\u201d Blu-ray from Synapse Films is now available for purchase.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ah, the 1980s, a time when college kids were running around campuses firing dart guns, paint guns and all sorts of other weaponry at each other, just for fun and to pass the time between classes. In truth, this actually was a short-lived trend, and filmmakers of the day did take notice. Universal Pictures released the film Gotcha<\/em> (1985) later in the decade, but Tag: The Assassination Game<\/em> was the first major title to capitalize on the fad. The picture used all the elements common in coming-of-age pictures, like young love and wild comedy aimed at the youth market. But this independent did it with wit, and benefitted from early performances by future stars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Synapse Films is now releasing the movie as a \u201cStandard Edition\u201d Blu-ray. An earlier version arrived with a film poster reproduction card. This one forgoes the card, but includes the movie with all the extra features on the disc. This means that, for fans of the movie, this Blu-ray is still well worth picking up if you haven\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The movie has been restored in 2K from the original 35mm archival vault materials. The was not a big budget movie (it reportedly cost $1million dollars) and was shot primarily at UCLA, with many scenes set at night. That means that it was never the type of film that would benefit from a 4K release. While the daylight scenes look great and there is some moody, film-noir-like lighting during a few sequences, it\u2019s also a little dark and features a good amount of natural grain. So, the picture isn\u2019t crystal clear, not that it could ever be. But this is as good as it is likely to ever look and this disc is a definite improvement over the DVD and VHS (I had the VHS tape and it always looked dark\u2026 to the point where it was hard to see what was going on in a few shots \u2013 that problem is gone on this disc).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As mentioned, the plot involves a group of university students taking part in a lengthy competition. Each participant receives a letter with their target, and must shoot their prey with a toy dart gun in order to eliminate the foe. If they succeed, they take their victim\u2019s assignment, until all players are whittled down to just one. Obsessive Loren Gersh (Bruce Abbott) has never lost the tournament and takes it far too seriously. So much so that when another player outsmarts and eliminates him, the furious Loren can\u2019t handle it. He gets a real gun and actually shoots and kills his target. He then hides the body, and then takes the file for the next player, repeating the same process. It isn\u2019t long before many students begin disappearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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School reporter Alex Marsh (Robert Carradine) gets in the middle of a showdown and becomes interested in the competition. Deciding it would make for a great story, he asks determined player Susan Swayze (Linda Hamilton) if he can tail her in order to write his report on the game. After some bickering, she eventually agrees. Over the process, they continue arguing (like something out of a film noir) but also become attracted to each other. Susan eventually finds out that she and Loren are the last two figures left in the competition, and the two hunt each other down. At this point, Alex becomes concerned about the disappearances, learns the truth, and ends up attempting to find Susan before she ends up as the final victim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cast is the real selling point here. Carradine and Hamilton are very good together onscreen, and their back-and-forth interplay works well. Abbott also makes a big impression as the psychotic player. Killing people actually seems to serve Loren well, as he slowly transitions from a schlub into a James Bond-like figure, becoming more and more dangerous as the story evolves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There are plenty of moments of suspense as various characters attempt to outsmart and trap each other. Some of the pursuits are played for laughs, while those involving Loren become more and more tense and dangerous as the bodies pile up. The pacing is good and, despite the budgetary constraints, it ends up being quite lively and enjoyable throughout. In the end, it\u2019s fair to consider this somewhat lost little 80s picture better than it\u2019s given credit for, and one that deserves a bigger following.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As far as extras go, there is a great archival commentary with writer\/director Nick Castle, and star Robert Carradine. Castle is a fantastic speaker who shares great stories about this production. At the time, Castle had been working as a screenwriter, co-penning Escape from New York<\/em> with John Carpenter. Naturally, he wanted to try his hand at directing, and got his opportunity after speaking with an investor, who said he had $1 million dollars to invest in a film. Specifically, a movie about this unusual competition craze that was occurring on several campuses. Castle jumped at the opportunity and started to work on it. When the script was completed and approved, John Carpenter wrote a letter assuring investors that Castle would make a fine director, and the project went ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The writer\/director discusses some of the notable, soon-to-be-famous faces who auditioned for the movie and shares that he ultimately picked Carradine and Hamilton because they had the best onscreen chemistry. He also mentions all the film\u2019s references to people he knew (many of the characters were named after friends, including Swayze and Carpenter), as well as discussing several crew cameos present in the film.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carradine talks about how much he enjoyed the script and neo-noir elements that Castle brought to the story. The pair share fun memories of the shoot and discuss working with cast members, including Bruce Abbott, Xander Berkeley, Michael Winslow and Forest Whitaker. The speakers note that while Hamilton and Abbott would marry a few years later, they were not dating during the shoot and only became involved afterwards. Amazingly, this was Whitaker\u2019s first gig and the role didn\u2019t feature any lines of dialogue, but Castle remembers the future star being a professional and giving it his all in the part. They do note that the picture was not a hit upon its original release. They note the limited release and botched publicity, including a confusing advertising campaign that didn\u2019t really capture the tone of the movie. All in all, this is a wonderful commentary with plenty of technical details, as well as personal recollections that are insightful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The disc also includes a trailer for the movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tag: The Assassination Game<\/em> is definitely a film of its era, which should provide movie fans who grew up in the 1980s with a nostalgia hit. And while it\u2019s a low-budget effort, the script and performances are great, and the film noir references are fun and help distinguish the movie from other titles of the era. It\u2019s a good time and the disc provides viewers with the best presentation of the movie possible (given its age and limited resources). It\u2019s easy to see that Nick Castle had the skills that would move him up the Hollywood ladder and onto projects like The Last Starfighter, Tap, Dennis the Menace<\/em> and Major Payne<\/em>). 80s film fans will enjoy this obscure but entertaining release and it comes recommended.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This \u201cStandard Edition\u201d Blu-ray from Synapse Films is now available for purchase. Ah, the 1980s, a time when college kids were running around campuses firing dart guns, paint guns and all sorts of other weaponry at each other, just for fun and to pass the time between classes. In truth, this actually was a short-lived […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":49676,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[114,342,2933,2939,24840,4660,4983,24843,7756,10831,12444,13842,24845,24844,17146,19488,24836,24837,24839,24838,22825,24842,24841],"class_list":["post-49669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-114","tag-80s","tag-blasts-from-the-past-2","tag-blasts-from-the-past-blu-ray-review-2","tag-bruce-abbott","tag-comedy","tag-cult","tag-dart-gun","tag-forest-whitaker","tag-john-carpenter","tag-linda-hamilton","tag-michael-winslow","tag-nick-castle","tag-paint-ball","tag-robert-carradine","tag-synapse-films","tag-tag-blu-ray-review","tag-tag-the-assassination-game","tag-tag-the-assassination-game-blu-ray-review","tag-tag-the-assassination-game-review","tag-thriller","tag-ucla","tag-xander-berkeley"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49669","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=49669"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49669\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49677,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49669\/revisions\/49677"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/49676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=49669"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=49669"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=49669"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}