Review: The Legend of Tarzan

Lord John Clayton of Greystoke manor (Alexander Skarsgaard) ventures back to his former home in the jungles of Africa in the late 19^th Century when a special envoy (Samuel L. Jackson) sent by U.S. President Benjamin Harrison is tasked with investigating claims of slavery under Belgian King Leopold. Chief menace is King Leopold’s own special envoy Leon Rorn (Christoph Waltz), whilst Margot Robbie plays Clayton’s wife Jane, who also travels to the Congo to be with her husband who feels as uneasy in the world of aristocracy he was born into, as he does in the jungle among apes where he grew up. Djimon Hounsou, in a bit of casting he should’ve escaped about a decade ago, plays a local African tribal chief in cahoots with Rorn.

I’m not the biggest Tarzan fan, but I did like “Greystoke” and the late 90s Disney animated “Tarzan”. This 2016 big-screen outing from director David Yates (“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”) and screenwriters Craig Brewer (director of “Hustle & Flow” and “Black Snake Moan”) & Adam Cozad (the underrated “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit”) is pretty uneven stuff. I have a fair bit of time for him elsewhere, but Alexander Skarsgaard seems a bit lean and sinewy in the lead. I get that this was intentional, but realistic or not I always picture Tarzan as being more muscle-head than lean and toned. More importantly he (seemingly doing a glum Viggo Mortensen impersonation) and the character as written here are a bit dour and uninteresting.

Whatever there is to like here, tends to happen around or away from Tarzan. Former Aussie soap star Margot Robbie gets the American accent about 99.99% right here and looks absolutely radiant as Jane. She gives a very fine performance playing for the most part the film’s most interesting character. Yes, Jane does eventually move more closely into damsel in distress territory, but largely the character is no shrinking violet, which I love. No mere ornament, she’s feisty, stubborn, intelligent, and compassionate. This is probably Robbie’s best work to date, she’s easily the best thing about the film. When Samuel L. Jackson’s character is introduced as an African-American emissary appointed by U.S. President Benjamin Harrison (and Civil War veteran), I have to admit my initial reaction was: I love you Sam Jackson, but surely even you know that shit ain’t happening. Turns out the character is based on a real-life guy and for the most part the story checks out (Obviously Tarzan plays no part in the real-life account). Fair enough, and Jackson gives a fun, if pretty safe performance. Yes, the man does seem to cash a lot of checks these days rather than doing more high-brow stuff, but unlike most pay check-earning actors (*cough* Bruce Willis *cough*), Jackson usually looks like he’s having fun, and that’s the case here. As for Christoph Waltz, he may not be giving his acting chops a workout here in a villainous turn, but he’s rock-solid and well-(type)cast. He definitely needs the opportunity to explore different facets of his acting repertoire, though.

The few moments I did like involving Tarzan involve his interactions with some pretty convincing CG animals, which I really liked especially the gorgeous elephant herd and a cool fight between Tarzan and one of his former ‘brothers’. So there’s some fun stuff here, it’s just not a film with a whole lot of fun, and it’s awfully slow to start as well. I did like the first use of the infamous Tarzan yell though, as somewhat of a warning to Waltz’s character. As shot by Henry Braham (“Everybody’s Fine”, “The Golden Compass”), the film is stunning to look at, and the music score by Rupert Gregson-Williams (who has scored most of Adam Sandler’s films since “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry”) is pretty solid too.

Parts are better than the whole here in this fairly dour and intermittently enjoyable retelling of the famous Edgar Rice Burroughs stories. Good supporting cast takes it some of the way, but a pretty unmemorable showing for the title character. You’re better off watching Jon Favreau’s incredible version of “The Jungle Book” for your jungle fix.

Rating: C+