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- Feb 8, 1999
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- Robert Harris
When Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote Tarzan of the Apes, which was published in 1912, he probably had little concept of the number of less than stellar films that his creation would eventually host.
The originals are classic cinema. Beginning with Elmo Lincoln in Tarzan of the Apes in 1918 though Adventures of Tarzan in 1921, it was a notable beginning.
But it wasn't until 1932, with M-G-M's stock footage-filled production, aptly entitled Tarzan the Ape Man, that his character joined high-end filmmaking.
It seems that Mr. Burroughs had little problem licensing out his creation, as after Johnny Weissmuller lent his stature and acrobatics to the role, Buster Crabbe appeared a year later, in Tarzan the Fearless, yet another low budget quickie.
M-G-M's second offering was Tarzan and His Mate, possibly the best of the series, arrived in 1934, followed by Tarzan Escapes (1936), Tarzan Finds a Son (1939), Tarzan's Secret Treasure (1941), Tarzan's New York Adventure (1942), Tarzan Triumphs (RKO, 1943), Tarzan's Desert Mystery (RKO, 1943), Tarzan and the Amazons (RKO, 1945), Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (RKO, 1946), Tarzan and the Huntress (RKO, 1947), Tarzan and the Mermaids ( RKO, 1948) - and then the titular character was turned over to Lex Barker.
The first two are worth your attention.
Imho, it wasn't until 1984 that we had another Tarzan film worth one's attention - Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes.
Like Anna Christie, Tarzan was cursed by the Great Fire, and comes from a dupe. Also, like Christie, it looks fine, and the documentary dupes for various and sundry wild animals look better than expected. Even with the duping process, the handful of prop animals also look okay, and probably fare better than had they been seen via an OCN.
Also, akin to Anna Christie, Tarzan actually doesn't an appearance until around reel three.
The film was shot with interiors at the studio, with exteriors in and around LA, including Toluca Lake, with one sequence in Algiers.
Image – 7.5
Audio – 8
Pass / Fail – Pass
Plays nicely with projectors - Yes
Worth your attention - 10
Slipcover rating - n/a
Upgrade from DVD - Absolutely
Very Highly Recommended
Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.
The originals are classic cinema. Beginning with Elmo Lincoln in Tarzan of the Apes in 1918 though Adventures of Tarzan in 1921, it was a notable beginning.
But it wasn't until 1932, with M-G-M's stock footage-filled production, aptly entitled Tarzan the Ape Man, that his character joined high-end filmmaking.
It seems that Mr. Burroughs had little problem licensing out his creation, as after Johnny Weissmuller lent his stature and acrobatics to the role, Buster Crabbe appeared a year later, in Tarzan the Fearless, yet another low budget quickie.
M-G-M's second offering was Tarzan and His Mate, possibly the best of the series, arrived in 1934, followed by Tarzan Escapes (1936), Tarzan Finds a Son (1939), Tarzan's Secret Treasure (1941), Tarzan's New York Adventure (1942), Tarzan Triumphs (RKO, 1943), Tarzan's Desert Mystery (RKO, 1943), Tarzan and the Amazons (RKO, 1945), Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (RKO, 1946), Tarzan and the Huntress (RKO, 1947), Tarzan and the Mermaids ( RKO, 1948) - and then the titular character was turned over to Lex Barker.
The first two are worth your attention.
Imho, it wasn't until 1984 that we had another Tarzan film worth one's attention - Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes.
Like Anna Christie, Tarzan was cursed by the Great Fire, and comes from a dupe. Also, like Christie, it looks fine, and the documentary dupes for various and sundry wild animals look better than expected. Even with the duping process, the handful of prop animals also look okay, and probably fare better than had they been seen via an OCN.
Also, akin to Anna Christie, Tarzan actually doesn't an appearance until around reel three.
The film was shot with interiors at the studio, with exteriors in and around LA, including Toluca Lake, with one sequence in Algiers.
Image – 7.5
Audio – 8
Pass / Fail – Pass
Plays nicely with projectors - Yes
Worth your attention - 10
Slipcover rating - n/a
Upgrade from DVD - Absolutely
Very Highly Recommended
Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link.
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