THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
Tarzán has been an iconic figure in pop culture for the past century due to many written stories since 1912, along with many film adaptations since 1918. Of all the adaptations that viewers have seen and enjoyed the most is the 1999 animated adaptation by Walt Disney Pictures.
PLOT
Based on the first novel, ‘Tarzán of the Apes’, the film takes place in the 1860s where our titular protagonist is raised by the gorilla Kala (Glenn Close) since he was a baby, only after his parents were killed by the jaguar Sabor. Ironically, the predator also took the life of Kala’s baby. Despite disapproval of her mate Kerchak (Lance Henriksen), she is still allowed to raise him. As a child, Tarzan befriends with the gorilla Terk(ina) and the elephant Tantor. When he grows to be an adult (Tony Goldwyn), he does kill Sabor which led to gaining Kerchak’s respect. And at that moment, a gunshot is heard. Tarzán goes to investigate and discovers other humans for the first time. Professor Archimedes Porter (Nigel Hawthorne) and his daughter Jane (Minnie Driver) are there to study gorillas while the hunter William Clayton (Brian Blessed) is there to protect them but secretly wants to hunt the animals. When separated, Jane is chased by baboons and she is saved by the ape man. He takes her to her camp which is trashed by Tantor (Wayne Knight), Terk (Rosie O’Donnell) and other apes. She does reunite with her group and discusses what she had transpired. Kerchak warns Tarzan to stay away from the other humans in order to be safe. He disobeys him and still visits them occasionally. With them, he learns English, discovering what the human world is like and falls in love with Jane. He still chooses not to let them see the gorillas due to his fear of losing Kerchak’s trust. That changes when the ship for the explorers returns to pick them up. Persuaded by Clayton, he takes them to the gorillas, thinking Jane will stay. They do get this opportunity to meet them but when Kerchak returns after being distracted by Terk and Tantor, Tarzan has to hold him back in order for the humans to escape. Confused of everything around him, Kala finally shows him the the treehouse where she found him, explaining his adoption. Knowing this, he puts on the clothes of his birth father, deciding to leave with Jane. However when boarding the ship, the next day he and the Porters are betrayed by Clayton and his band of stowaway poachers. His plan with his crew is to capture the gorillas at their nesting grounds, planing to sell them at England. Tarzan escapes due to the aid of Terk and Tantor. He and every animal in the jungle attack Clayton's crew in order to free the gorillas. Clayton shoots the ape man in the arm, following with fatally shooting Kerchak. He and Tarzan fight on the treetops, leading to them being trapped in vines. When he tries to chop off the vines around him, one is wrapped around his neck and when he falls, he gets hanged in the process. Tarzan survives his fall and is told by Kerchak in his dying breath to lead the gorillas. The film ends with the Porters choosing to stay with him and they begin their new lives in the jungle.
THOUGHTS
Looking back, it’s crazy to believe that this isn’t the first adaptation of the iconic character because after all this time, it has grown to be the most superior of the bunch. I think that the reason this movie has grown to be the most watchable adaptation of the iconic character, besides the great animation, has to be because it feels the most grounded. Many tales of this character make him look or sound invincible but this one shows him when vulnerable as well. We like this character in general because he is living the best of both worlds: He is a human raised by gorillas and from what we see in his perspective is that he is trying to be himself but still wants to fit in. The song 'Son of Man' truly defines his journey in the most positive way possible. Also, it truly feels like the romance is earned between him and Jane because he does more than save her danger, he is learning from her what its like to be human and because of that, his love for her is formed. He loves her for making him human. The song 'Strangers Like Me' accurately expresses his emotions he goes through during his time with her. For Jane, she becomes interested in Tarzan not just because of him saving her but in her perspective, there's no one like him. She stood out as a character because of how empathetic she was to him. And with that being said, explains why she loved him so much she chose to stay. I also gotta admit the scene where he is slightly annoyed when saving her is hilarious. I mean it just eases the tension of such a crazy chase. Now when it comes to her father, he stayed as well not just for his interest in the gorillas but in my perspective, he truly believes there is some kind of friendship with Tarzan. He was memorable for being a joyful man and a caring father. This movie may be about Tarzan but when we focus on Kala in the first act, it really is a movie about motherhood due to how protective she becomes for him. She was everything that mattered the most when being a mother: loving and protective, which is all that matters when living in a jungle. Raising him was Kala's second chance at being a mother and she did not waste it. The song "You'll Be In My Heart" accurately describes how much she will continue to love him as her own no matter what. Kerchak was tough on our lead character because that was his depiction of grief. His slow transition of aggressive to caring was satisfying to see because it showed how those who go through said grief will find a way to overcome it. The death of his child broke him and was unable to cope like Kala could. Because of his attitude, it was hard to like him but you had to respect his concern to protect his family. The moment he notices Kala grieving that Tarzan left is his realization that he was too hard on him, besides respecting that he slayed Sabor. His death can arguably be as sad as Mufasa's from The Lion King because you will likely shed a tear when he calls him his son before he dies. Terk and Tantor were the comedic relief to keep the children viewers invested and both really held their end on that stick. Terk was funny for having a sassy atttitude, whereas Tantor stood out for being hysterically paranoid. The villains Clayton and Sabor definitely made the movie more mature than expected. Clayton is obviously dangerous due to being the only one with the gun but his attitude beforehand towards everyone shows that he shouldn't be trusted. He clearly is one of the most ruthless villains we've ever seen from Walt Disney's catalog due to being the least hesitant in comparison to others when it comes to the decisions he doesn't come back from. Even though it is common for a villain to die, it was so dark that it happens due of his own actions. The shadow of him being hanged really caught me off guard and I assumed that others felt the same in 1999. Sabor on the other hand is a bigger villain one would think in his given time, due to killing members of both families. The opening showing what the creature had done is just as haunting as the imagery of Clayton's death. I give this movie a lot of credit but after all the praise I’ve said, I admit there’s still some flaws. First off, I know the story gets started when Kala finds baby Tarzan but gorillas don’t have a better hearing compared to humans. So hearing that cry was pure luck that day. I want to laugh how Tantor mistakes Tarzan as a piranha but how come the elephants know about them yet don’t know where they originate? That debate confuses me. I know Jane brought an array of clothes for her trip, but why bring a big dress to the jungle? That’s guaranteed to be ruined the second you put it on in such an environment. I ignore a lot of stuff but I can’t ignore this: How does Tarzan not have a beard? He may have a spear but I don’t think that’s as effective as a knife or a razor blade. Did he not hit puberty? Someone please explain the simple things. I know Tarzan wants Jane to stay if he shows her his gorilla family. But if he wanted to ensure Kerchak wouldn’t know, he should’ve asked Terk to come by the camp and their leader wouldn’t know. And unbeknownst, Clayton wouldn’t find their nest. And lastly, I want to be impressed on how Tarzan never found the treehouse but how hasn’t he? For someone who grew up not treated equally by Kerchak, I would assume he would travel around the jungle to get space and somehow bump into it. However if you ignore all of this, I believe that you’ll still enjoy this film for what it is. To wrap up, Chris Buck and Kevin Lima gave us what is arguably the one adaptation of Tarzan that is living to be timeless for teaching viewers to be the best version of yourself because we're all the same inside. If you love the taste of adventure, then this will be a cup of tea.
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