Tarzan (June 18, 1999)

I have never been a fan of Tarzan, (or any other adaptations of the story, Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice, for that matter). I suppose I am not a fan of a child being raised by wild animals in the jungle. The plot follows Tarzan, a boy whose parents were killed by a leopard and thus raised by a group of gorillas, as he grows up in the jungle. He eventually crosses pass with a group of researchers one of whom, Jane, he falls in love with. This movie has a fantastic soundtrack. It even won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for, “You’ll Be in My Heart.” (though my personal favorite is, “Strangers Like Me”) It often draws my attention away from the movie itself. This is helped along by the fact it often accompanies montages instead of being integrated into the film through singing. There are way too many montages in the movie, and they are accompanied with odd cinematography choices (fast motion pans, quick cuts, etc.) that give the appearance of trying too hard to make the film exciting. The animation is fine; The jungle setting is breath taking- comparing it to The Jungle Book from 30 years prior is like night and day. Moving away from the technical aspects, the characters are overall fine. I enjoyed the relationship between Tarzan and his adopted mother, Kala, as she adopted him to fill a void in her heart after the death of her biological son. Tarzan’s supposed best friend, Terk, however, grated on my last nerves; I hated her. She was supposed to be wise cracking and likable by she came off as malicious either putting down Tarzan when he was younger or taking credit for his hunting prowess when he matured, and just generally seeming self-serving. I wish she were eliminated from the movie as she was the worst part by far. Even the villain was more enjoyable, and he was just your standard cinematic trigger-happy hunter/ protector. Tarzan’s evolving relationship with Jane is also a bright spot in the movie as they bring out the best in each other (Jane more than holds her own alongside Tarzan) and it is fascinating watching as Tarzan learns to be human. It is also an interesting touch that when Tarzan is talking to the Gorillas in the presence of Jane he appears to talk in grunts. In the end, Tarzan is a fine adventure film with good relationships, mostly likable characters, and good music. It does however have its faults in its overuse of montages and artificial action shots, and the awful character, Terk.

Final Rating: 6.5/10