My year with Tarzan

[Garp]

... Though some observers have commented ERB did not want to risk a copyright lawsuit as it might open the door to him being sued over the blatant similarities between Tarzan and Mowgli of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. ...

I originally toyed with the idea of adding 'The Jungle Book' movies as bonus films because of the similarities. But there seem to be so many of them, I ditched it. I might try to watch them next year as a mini-franchise, who knows?

 

[Garp]

Week 7: 'Tarzan's Revenge' [1938]

Well-to-do hunters arrive in Africa to bag some game. Instead, perky Eleanor is captivated by the rugged ape-man, unbeknownst that a wily Sheikh also has designs on her.

While Johnny Weissmuller was wowing audiences with his portrayal of Tarzan, Glenn Morris shuffles onto the scene in this lacklustre B-movie. In reality, this is hardly a Tarzan movie at all, as Morris (his only Tarzan film) doesn't appear until nearly 15 minutes in, says no more than four words and pops up in a handful of scenes. Which might be a blessing, as Morris hardly lights up the screen. Instead, we are entertained by Olympic swimmer Eleanor Holm and her superb diving skills. Morris, an Olympic decathlon champ, holds his own in the swimming department too, and can certainly swing on a vine or two. Overall, though, this is a dull affair. There is precious little action, poor and repetitive jungle sets (although the Sheik's palace is better) and a story that's hardly there. If it wasn't for Holm, it would have been a total disaster. She's lively and natural , and it's surprising she didn't continue making films after this.

There is one brief scene on a rope bridge that fans of Indiana Jones would recognise, but otherwise I was waiting for something interesting to happen before it ended. But it didn't.

 

[bionicbob]

I agree with you on all counts! Other than some nice set pieces, decent production values and Indiana Jones foreshadowing, Tarzan's Revenge is very underwhelming and forgettable.

Though this reviewer seemed to like it...

 

[Garp]

Week 8: 'Tarzan and the Green Goddess' [1938]

Herman Brix played Tarzan in a 1935 serial called 'The New Adventures of Tarzan', which was re-edited with new footage into the film 'Tarzan and the Green Goddess' in 1938. Along with a new title and scenes, Brix also gets a new name - Bruce Bennett. Here, Tarzan is in Guatemala, trying to save an idol containing secrets of a new explosive getting into the wrong hands. Confusion ensues.

With the looks, physique and extensive vocabulary, Brix/Bennett ticks all the boxes for Burroughs' Tarzan. While reading the novels, Bennett's persona comes close to what I envision Burroughs had in mind (indeed, Burroughs chose Brix to play the role). Unfortunately, B/B lacks the acting chops to truly stand out. He has a distinctive and unique battle yell, and his signature move appears to be Dropping On People From A Great Height. But his delivery of dialogue is wooden and stilted.

Not that B/B had any stiff opposition when it came to acting in this film; no one gets out alive. Lew Sargent is the worst offender here, as the humorless and annoying comic relief. There's no Jane in this film, but plenty of MacGuffins - the idol, the code book to the explosives formula, etc -for Tarzan to continually rescue instead. Being edited from a serial means that the film doesn't flow very well, being episodic in its action (which isn't that exciting). As I try to remember it now, it's already confused in my mind with the 1937 serial 'Jungle Jim' I'm slowly going through, as it's pretty forgettable. Apparently it was filmed on location, but it still doesn't look great, and actually looks older than both 1935 and 1938, with some shots possibly coming from the silent era.

MGM managed to block this film from playing in major theaters, and B/B never played Tarzan again. It's a shame, as they were obviously trying for a more authentic portrayal. But as it stands, it's a well-intentioned failure.

 

[bionicbob]

The New Adventures of Tarzan/The Green Goddess is probably the last accurate onscreen portrayal of the Lord of the Apes for the next 30 years. Instead of the complex, multi-lingual, adventuring Lord Greystoke as seen here, audiences will instead settle for the mono-slavic wildman version made popular by Weissmuller and continued on by Lex Barker and Gordon Scott.

Our own fan editor @Billy Batson did a good fan edit of the this serial....

 

[Garp]

BONUS: 'Jungle Jim' [serial] [1937]

Somewhere deep in Africa, Jungle Jim (Grant Withers) is hired to find a missing heiress Joan Redmond (Betty Jane Rhodes). Meanwhile, another group are out scouting for her, with the intent to dispose of her and steal her loot. Casual racism ensues.

This 1937 serial is based on a newspaper comic strip, and utilizes that origin in a unique way: each episode uses drawn comic strip panels to help the audience remember what happened the previous week. Once we get past the recap, Jim is thrown into all sorts of scrapes, including an erupting volcano and landslides, and the obligatory wild animals, aided by his equally alliterate sidekick Malay Mike. (I have to pause here and marvel at the names the characters have - not just the two heroes, but also our villain The Cobra and his sister Shanghai Lil. Wonderful stuff.)

You see, Joan was abandoned in the jungle and brought up by The Cobra and Shanghai Lil, pretending to be her parents. (How this deception worked is not clear, considering they don't look much older than her, but still.) Joan grows up to be part Sheena, part Joy Adamson, as The Lion Goddess, while The Cobra is seen as some kind of other god by the native tribe. And herein things become problematic for 21st century eyes. The tribe is depicted as ignorant savages, ripe for hoodwinking and carrying out whatever whims the white saviors order. Yes, of course, it was a different time, but it made for an uneasy viewing. Only Al Duvall as Kolu, Joan's manservant, is shown in a favorable light and, to be fair, is given quite a heroic role at times.

Production values are high - the volcano and landslides are especially good - and the acting is adequate for a serial. Raymond Hatton as Malay Mike just about reigns in his comic relief enough to stave off becoming annoying, and seems to be trying desperately to make his line "You're telling me" become his catchphrase. Jim (Withers) gets into more cliffhangers that require him to rescue himself rather than any damsels, which is refreshing, as Joan (Rhodes) can hold her own here. Jim also gets to belt out a tune halfway through the episodes ('I'm takin' the jungle trail'), and I was expecting more (the song is credited in each opening title) but no. One and done. Back to shootin' critters.

I only managed to watch all four hours of this serial (over several evenings) as I plan to watch Johnny Weissmuller's portrayal of the same character for future bonus films. I wouldn't say the time was completely wasted - there is intermittent fun to be had here - but like Jim's song, I'm one and done with this.

 

[Garp]

Week 9: 'Tarzan the Ape Man' [1932]

Johnny Weissmuller yodels his way into the first of a string of Tarzan films, with Maureen O'Sullivan practically swiping the picture from him as Jane.

It seems that the Tarzan legend was familiar enough to audiences by 1932 that no backstory was deemed necessary in 'Tarzan the Ape Man'. Explorers are in search of the legendary Elephants' Graveyard with its fortune in ivory, accompanied by the leader's daughter, Jane Parker (O'Sullivan). While on their trek, they encounter a semi-mute white man, who is fascinated with Jane. As they spend more time together, the feeling becomes mutual.

Considering this film started the run of arguably the most famous Tarzan of them all, it was not the movie I was expecting. There is no hint of Tarzan for 25 minutes, although Weissmuller's introduction is a good one - his inimitable yell. It's almost another 10 minutes until we get to see the statuesque swimmer-cum-actor in person. This is Weissmuller's first foray into acting, and he does an admirable job. Admittedly he has precious little dialogue to remember - the infamous 'Me Tarzan, You Jane' line is here, albeit not exactly in that order - but he comes across as natural in front of the camera and, of course, handles the athletic aspects with ease. It's difficult not to picture him as Tarzan, so iconic has his portrayal become, even though he is not the sophisticated gentleman that Burroughs wrote about. (Burroughs did get script approval, however, and lavished praise on the result.)

The reason I was expecting something different is that this is not some quickie B-movie. The film looks great, with excellent matte paintings depicting vast horizons. The rear projection stands out in places, but is used well; indeed, much of the early part of the film (sans Tarzan) looks like a travelogue of Africa. O'Sullivan, however, is the real star here, though. She is breezy, confident, and can stand toe-to-toe with Weissmuller, if not eye-to-eye (that guy is tall!). The other big surprise is that, at its heart, 'Tarzan the Ape Man' is a love story. Yes, there is action, with the required lion-wrestling, elephant stampedes and the like, but much of the film is concerned with Tarzan and Jane's blossoming romance. The chemistry between them is so good, it doesn't drag the second act down in the slightest.

Things start to take an unexpected turn in the third act - I didn't have 'Captured by Dwarf Tribe' on my Tarzan bingo card - and for me it was the part that dated this film the most (blackface little people not being something you would tend to depict these days). Otherwise, for a 90 year old film it was amazing. If the other 11 Weissmuller films can capture even a fraction of this quality, I'm in for a good three months of viewing.

 

[Garp]

BONUS: 'Jungle Jim' [1948]

Tarzan vs Superman! Well, Johnny Weissmuller vs George Reeves, at any rate. Jungle Jim discovers a golden vial encrypted with strange hieroglyphics containing a black substance. Further investigation reveals that it's from a legendary city of lost treasures, and the liquid is a poison that could also cure Polio, for some reason. Away go Jim, a beautiful scientist and a photographer on an adventure!

When I saw in the opening credits that this was produced by Sam Katzman, I knew I was in for something special. Not necessarily good, but at least interesting, I thought. Well, I was disappointed. This is a mostly tedious film that tries to stretch a thin plot into a 72 minute feature. Weissmuller hangs up his loincloth and dons a pith helmet, but you would never guess that he's a veteran of a dozen films by this stage. His delivery is wooden and he has zero rapport with any of the cast. It had been 12 years since he first played Tarzan, so we can graciously forgive the middle-age spread he displays, but there is nothing here to warrant another 15 sequels with him as the lead, as far as I could see. We are reminded of his swimming glory within the first couple of minutes, and there are more unnecessary swimming scenes to pad out the runtime.

In fact, this is a film of mostly filler. We have overlong scenes of cutesy animal shenanigans (a little dog, a trained crow and various monkeys) and a love triangle subplot that goes absolutely nowhere. One of the best scenes is unintentionally funny, when Jim rescues the beautiful scientist (Virginia Grey, who seems to be at least trying her best with the appalling script) from the worst looking crocodile* I have ever seen. Even 12 year olds must have been throwing things at the screen.

Reeves is good in a double-crossing role, and the climax provides some thrills, I suppose, with kidnapped people being strung up by their feet and Weissmuller continually throwing native tribesmen into fire. It's not enough, though, not nearly enough.

*Edit: According to several reviews on Letterboxd, this is supposed to be a 'Lake Monster'. How these reviewers decided this, considering there were set-up shots of crocodiles entering the lake and no mention that I can recall of "Look out for the Lake Monster!" or similar, is unclear. But as the creature did not in fact look much like a crocodile, I'm willing to go along with this opinion, as idiotic as it may be.

 

[bionicbob]

'Tarzan the Ape Man' [1932]

Otherwise, for a 90 year old film it was amazing. If the other 11 Weissmuller films can capture even a fraction of this quality, I'm in for a good three months of viewing.

While all of the Weissmuller films are enjoyable, the first 3 are the best. In fact, I would say TARZAN AND HIS MATE is superior to his debut film, with TARZAN ESCAPES a close second. After this, Tarzan and Jane become more domesticated. But all the MGM films have fantastic production values for the time. You are in for some great escapist fun!

 

[bionicbob]

For all my love for Jungle Adventures, and even deeper love for comic strip writer/artist Alex Raymond, I have never read any of the original JUNGLE JIM comics or seen a single movie or tv episode. I must correct that!

 

[Garp]

Week 10: 'Tarzan and His Mate' [1934]

After unsuccessfully relieving the Elephant's graveyard of its priceless ivory in 'Tarzan the Ape Man', Harry Holt (Neil Hamilton) returns a year later on a new safari to have another go. Along on the adventure is his duplicitous friend Martin (Paul Cavanagh). But is it really the ivory they seek, or the lovely Jane (Maureen O'Sullivan), Tarzan's mate?

This second Johnny Weissmuller film surpasses the first in practically every way. Despite being slightly longer, it seems more streamlined with a cohesive plot and very little filler. O'Sullivan is gorgeous here in the skimpiest of costumes, even skinny-dipping in a wonderfully balletic underwater sequence (utilizing a stand-in). Her banter with Weissmuller, who has learned a few more words by this stage, is fun and you can well imagine that they are in their honeymoon phase (Tarzan refers to Jane at one point as his "wife").

Cavanagh plays a convincing sleazy cad, and Hamilton is equally as good as a man torn between his love for Jane but also wanted to respect her wishes. Like its predecessor, 'Tarzan and His Mate' is a romance, but it doesn't rein in the action sequences. This film is jam-packed with animals, many of whom Weissmuller gets to wrestle. Jane requires rescuing from several beasts in quick succession - a lioness, a giant crocodile and a rhino (and has to hold Tarzan back from going after a leopard, just for the hell of it!) - in some thrillingly shot scenes. There are many instances of back-projection employed, not all looking as good as they did in the previous film, but no matter.

Racism is still an issue here - a native is casually shot dead as a warning to the other slaves not to slack - but Nathan Curry as Saidi is given an heroic role. With the same actors playing the same roles and a story that picks up after the original, these first two Weissmuller Tarzan films make for a wonderful double feature.

 

[bionicbob]

Absolutely LOVE Tarzan and His Mate! The chemistry between Weissmuller and O'Sullivan is superb and the final action climax is pure blockbuster!

Here's a nice overview by John Landis...

 

[Garp]

BONUS: 'The Lost Tribe' [1949]

What does Jungle Jim do, exactly? He seems to hang out in the jungle waiting for a mission, like a one-man A-Team. Anyway, here's Johnny (Weissmuller), helping the natives of a Lost City. Is this the same Lost City as in the previous adventure? I don't think so, though they appear to share the same interior designer. Apparently Lost Cities are two-a-penny in Jim's neck of the jungle.

Like its predecessor, 'The Lost Tribe' wastes no time getting Weissmuller into the water - less than five minutes. The little dog and crow reappear as sidekicks, for better or for worse, and again Jim wrestles a crocodile - definitely a crocodile this time, not some mutated lake creature. The film is so formulaic that when Jim dives into the ocean and you wonder whether a shark is about to show up... well, just wait a few more seconds. There are also men in gorilla suits (Ray 'Crash' Corrigan is one of them) which almost makes up for sitting through this thing.

What gets me most about these films so far is how wooden Weissmuller's line delivery is. He's OK when it comes to action, but, boy, he can't do dialogue. Still, the paying public must have seen something in these, as there are another 14(!) of them for me to watch. I don't know why I do this to myself.

 

[bionicbob]

What gets me most about these films so far is how wooden Weissmuller's line delivery is. He's OK when it comes to action, but, boy, he can't do dialogue. Still, the paying public must have seen something in these, as there are another 14(!) of them for me to watch. I don't know why I do this to myself.

lol.... funny, many think of long running sequel franchises as a more modern cinematic trope (Bond, FF) but they have always been there. Weissmuller did 12 Tarzan flicks, 16 Jungle Jim (and then play the character on tv) and Johnny Sheffield, who played Tarzan's son "Boy", would go on to play BOMBA for 12 movies!

 

[Garp]

Week 11: 'Tarzan Escapes' [1936]

Jane's cousins Eric and Rita (William Henry and Benita Hume) arrive in Africa to track her down to inform she's inherited a fortune. But can they persuade her to return to civilization and leave behind her beloved Tarzan?

'Tarzan Escapes' follows on from its predecessors by having Jane's cousins namecheck Harry Holt and the Elephant's Graveyard, Jane's would-be beau, in an early scene. Characters are set up, including the not-to-be-trusted safari guide Captain Fry (John Buckler) and his put-upon servant Rawlins (Herbert Mundin, playing a character similar to Beamish in the previous films). Weissmuller's introduction as Tarzan is the same as in his first film - we just hear his battle cry - but his screen reveal is a good one - a long panning shot showing him watching the other characters from the trees.

After setting the bar high with the first two films, it's perhaps inevitable that 'Tarzan Escapes' is a slight comedown. The plot is simplistic and the film feels less epic in scope. Some shots are recycled from earlier films - the crocodile wrestling, for example, and (I believe) the elephant stampede - and there is more filler. Cheetah the chimp has more screentime, and Rawlins' comic relief gets too much attention too. Even the racism feels more overt, with the native slaves being whipped and falling from crevices with abandon.

Despite all that, 'Tarzan Escapes' is entertaining. The chemistry between the leads is still great, and the sets are excellent. O'Sullivan is forced to be more fully-clothed, wearing something Betty Rubble might have in her wardrobe. Indeed, the townhouse Tarzan has built for the two of them since the last film is a Flintstonian delight, with running water and a chimp-operated fan. Swimming plays a part in this film, of course, but this time (post Hays Code) no skinny-dipping!

The film's climax is lacklustre compared to others, with a swamp cave filled with not-very-scary normal-sized iguanas doubling for some man-eating beasts. It's a shame that the vampire bats scene that was shot was left on the cutting room floor. It sounds exactly the kind of thing this film needed. Overall, though, not a wasted evening.

 

[bionicbob]

TARZAN'S ESCAPE:

from good old wiki....

"A scene, which took a week to shoot, featuring Tarzan fighting vampire bats was cut from the final film after test audiences found the scenes too intense. The first director James C. McKay shot many of the "gruesome" scenes, but he was replaced by John Farrow in 1936 who re-shot much of the film. Richard Thorpe would finally get credit for directing the film"

 

[Garp]

TARZAN'S ESCAPE:

from good old wiki....

"A scene, which took a week to shoot, featuring Tarzan fighting vampire bats was cut from the final film after test audiences found the scenes too intense. The first director James C. McKay shot many of the "gruesome" scenes, but he was replaced by John Farrow in 1936 who re-shot much of the film. Richard Thorpe would finally get credit for directing the film"

I discovered today that Maureen O'Sullivan later married John Farrow and one of their daughters is Mia! I had no idea.

 

[Garp]

BONUS: 'Mark of the Gorilla' [1950]

'Mark of the Gorilla' starts with a stock-footage-heavy scene narrating a brief history of Nature Reserves. I thought for a moment that I had discovered Jungle Jim's occupation, but no: he informs another character a few scenes later that he does not work there. My quest to uncover JJ's job continues.

So, here we have Jim caught up in a, dare I say it, entertaining adventure, albeit of the Scooby-Doo variety. Gorillas, not native to those parts, are picking off unwary travelers - but why? Jim has his suspicions, but it takes a few interesting turns before the truth is uncovered.

As swimming seems to be a regular feature of Weissmuller's films, I'm going to start noting how long it takes him to dive into the drink in this franchise. In this case, due to the Nature Reserve introduction, we have to wait a good six minutes before he gets wet, but we do have another lake scene later on.

Anyway, despite a lacklustre start, this franchise takes an unexpected upward turn with 'Mark of the Gorilla'. It's not high art, of course, but it is fun for the most part. It features Nazi war criminals, looted gold and even a princess, sparking ideas in the minds of a young Spielberg and Lucas, perhaps. Weissmuller's line delivery hasn't improved, but he gets to wrestle a cheetah, a lion and, my personal favourites, an eagle and some kind of lake serpent. The filmmakers appear to have decided by this stage in the franchise that they are making movies for kids, which is no bad thing. Despite Jim having two beautiful female companions, there is not a whiff of romance here, with the emphasis being on fist fights and shoot-outs.

The gorilla suits are hefty and vaguely realistic - not so much the masks, but they are appropriate for the film. Jim's trained crow, Caw-caw (yes, that's his name) plays a decisive role in the plot, aiding Jim at various stages, relegating poor Skipper, his little dog, to the cutesy scenes, such as biting a lion's tail and smoking a cigar. You should've had the crow's agent, kid.

At a swift 67 minutes, 'Mark of the Gorilla' doesn't have much opportunity to sag. If you are desperate to see a Jungle Jim adventure, this would be a good place to start, currently available via a poor copy on YouTube.

 

[Garp]

Week 12: 'Tarzan Finds a Son!' [1939]

A plane crashes in the jungle. The sole survivor is a baby boy, the heir to the Greystoke fortune. First discovered by chimps, he is taken by Cheetah to Tarzan, who becomes a reluctant father to the strange and bawling child. When other Greystoke offspring come looking for the child five years later, Jane must struggle with her conscience and decide what is best for their adopted son named Boy...

'Tarzan Finds a Son!' has a few callbacks to previous films. A baby boy - a Greystoke, no less! - found by monkeys is a parallel to Tarzan's own backstory, and the relatives coming to find him to sort out an inheritance is basically the same plot as 'Tarzan Escapes'. Along with that, we have some reused film footage - the rhino scene is from 'Tarzan and his mate' - and we have another elephant stampede through a village. The Elephant's Graveyard gets another namecheck, and there's more underwater swimming too, though this time it's Tarzan and his son. (And, to be fair, it's very well done.)

All in all, it's not the most original of films, but it works. The addition of a mini Tarzan gives another dimension to Tarzan's life. His transformation from sneering at the interloper to becoming a doting Dad (albeit truncated - Boy goes from a baby to an energetic five year old in a blink of an eye) is touching, and gives him someone else to rescue (O'Sullivan was pregnant during the filming and gets into fewer scrapes).

Johnny Sheffield as Boy (you can probably guess which parent got to name him) is excellent - very physical with a typical penchant for getting into trouble, especially when it comes to throwing stones at wild animals. The supporting cast are adequate, with Henry Stephenson being the stand-out as the only relative happy to see the boy alive, so much so that he gives the five year old his own knife. Ah, the 30s!

Production values are still high. The treetop set is reused, and there are few, but good, matte paintings and back projection. 'Tarzan Finds a Son!' is perhaps not the most exciting of the Weissmuller films so far, but it introduces us to his extended family in an entertaining way. I'm curious to see what other trouble Boy gets into next.

 

[bionicbob]

TARZAN FINDS A SON -- an enjoyable romp. With this flick, the franchise fully transforms into an all ages, family friendly adventure show. Sheffield was a delightful addition and as the movies continued, I found he often stole the spotlight from Weissmuller. It is no wonder he would eventually get his own jungle franchise. The name dropping of "Greystoke" in this particular film, I always found to be charming and frustrating. I am assuming it was just a throw away Easter Egg for fans of the books. Regardless, a fun flick with always reliable solid MGM production values.