Review of Tarzan the Ape Man (1932) by Steve G — 29 Mar 2014

Good story. Weissmuller is competent, if not perfect. Lot of interesting symbolism & study into human nature. It was great to see, for the first time, so many references that one is familiar with, via pop culture. (eg. Tarzan's call).

Jane is cute enough, but her barely intelligible mid-Atlantic accent is grating on the ears, dah-ling. It gets old after the 7000th time. There's also an irritating feminist aspect about it. And I mean feminism, in the most annoying way possible.

However, after that nonsense, & when they begin looking for the ivory, the film really picks up. Especially when the titular character is introduced. Tarzan is a man who has been living in the jungle as a liberal for much of his life.

For living in the jungle, his hair is stylized quite perfectly. Some pretty risque wardrobe.

The use of animals is exceptional. Maybe the best in the history of film (not counting Jumanji). The special effects were pretty good for their day. Also, I detect some Return of the Jedi inspiration, here.

An annoying instance of moral equivalence once again. An ape kidnaps a woman & won't let her go. Her relatives shoot the ape. Tarzan kills the ape-killers. Apparently, we're told that the crime is no different.

Right...

Despite the adequate story, it was kind of an uneven ending.

*best scene in the movie (63 minutes in) is when Jane comes running from something, and the monkey is caught off guard and runs at her with a forearm shiver. lol. commendably, O'Sullivan doesn't break stride. Cheeta is awesome.