Directed by:
David YatesCinematography:
Henry BrahamComposer:
Rupert Gregson-WilliamsCast:
Alexander Skarsgård, Margot Robbie, Ella Purnell, Samuel L. Jackson, Christoph Waltz, Djimon Hounsou, Jim Broadbent, Casper Crump, Simon Russell Beale (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
It has been years since the man once known as Tarzan (Skarsgård) left the jungles of Africa behind for a gentrified life as John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke, with his beloved wife, Jane (Robbie) at his side. Now, he has been invited back to the Congo to serve as a trade emissary of Parliament, unaware that he is a pawn in a deadly convergence of greed and revenge, masterminded by the Belgian, Captain Leon Rom (Waltz). But those behind the murderous plot have no idea what they are about to unleash. (Warner Bros. UK)
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Reviews (12)
Despite the fact that some of the motifs are probably taken from various sequels to the original book, the plot of the film seems desperately pulled out of someone’s ass and the film looks as if none of the creators knew what they were doing. It is as if the film was gradually shot by three directors with different visions, or as if director David Yates wanted to shoot it in three different ways at once. The resulting mishmash is a combination of Tarzan, a romantically veiled red library in the style of Out of Africa and an adventure reminiscent of Indiana Jones. At the same time, the film lacks tension, well-filmed action, humor and fun. On the other hand, there is no lack of bad editing and the digital tricks have a fluctuating quality. The actors are either poorly cast, play below their abilities, or both. The last rescue of the creators would be for them to argue that they tried to reproduce the naive trashy atmosphere of the adventure novels of the 1920s and 1930s, which would explain a lot. But even so, that would amount to a rather weak apology.
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I would easily call the very beginning of the film brilliant. You tell yourself that this wouldn't be just any movie. But then the genius just disappears. And then it reappears in maybe two or three scenes. So there are as many scenes that are very good as there are scenes where you want to burst out laughing at the ineptitude. Aside from the sometimes rather trite script, the biggest weakness is Tarzan himself. I don't know if it was a poor choice of actor or if he was just written that oddly, but I wasn't impressed at all. I get it, he was raised by animals and had to behave differently, but this just wasn't it. So muscles... fine, he had them. But charisma? None. Too bad. On the other hand, the best thing about the whole movie, from my point of view, was the charming Margot. She had an interestingly written character and she could sell it. Otherwise, I'd recommend The Jungle Book, which came out at almost the same time. That one is much more sophisticated and catchy. 3 stars.
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That was bullshit. The plot doesn't make any sense, the effects are lousy in places, and the weird slow-motion spoils all the action. Tarzan comes across as bland to the point of being unlikeable, but it's not so much Alexander Skarsgård's fault as it is David Yates' dull direction that trips him up. The weird tree-running is eye-poppingly digital, as are the animals, and unfortunately not even Margot Robbie, who quite illogically spends her days in the Congo wearing a dress that doesn't even shine in the water, can save the day. Christoph Waltz as the villain is incredibly dull. I'm afraid Tarzan will be off the market for a long time.
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The beating heart, wide open eyes, and dancing soul of a former ten-year-old geek who has read everything that could be found about the ubiquitous man from the apes family. You don't forget your childhood loves even two decades later, and David Yates knows how to tell stories about heroes, villains, love, and friendship in such a fresh yet old-fashioned way that I have no defense. Alexander Skarsgård was born for the role of John Clayton, and when Margot Robbie for the first time in her career isn't annoying me, I am most excited after some slight hesitation. The power of the story and its message outweigh any quiet objections about minor physical flaws. I would take a sequel immediately, and even though the creators surprisingly quickly exhausted one storyline (Opar), I have dozens of directions in my head to explore.
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At first I was surprised with the story itself. The thing is that the film does not offer the classical view of Tarzan’s life in the jungle, but it starts at a moment when Tarzan is already a cultivated and respectable English subject with an aristocratic past and the manners or a true elderly gentleman. The beginning seems really good and it is really entertaining. But after about half an hour, Tarzan sets off on a journey to his original homeland. There is a plot twist and the story goes back to its beginning. So once again Tarzan is flying around on endless lianas – a liana in one hand, the beautiful Jane in the other – and he’s fighting against British colonists. At that point, the excitement starts to wane and unfortunately it doesn’t get better again. It’s fine, but this movie doesn’t deserve more than three stars to be swung towards it on a liana.
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