As a die-hard “Tarzan” fan since the 1999 Disney version debuted, I looked forward to the new release of “The Legend of Tarzan” with greater anticipation than a child at Christmastime. After all, the trailer made it look like a sweeping saga of love, adventure and self-discovery–the perfect combo of themes to make little ol’ me very happy. I entered the theater with my jungle-tinted glasses expecting only the best from director David Yates.
Well, I was disappointed.
I knew going into it that “The Legend of Tarzan” was not the original storyline. This film did not focus on Tarzan’s life among the apes, or the romance of meeting Jane. Instead, it focused on his life after the fact, as a Lord in England with responsibilities. After a ridiculously fast start, Tarzan and Jane travel back to Africa to stop an attempt at enslaving the entire Congo, and that’s basically the entire story, plus a kidnapping, a couple impressive CGI gorilla scenes and a decent amount of Tarzan beating the pulp out of people. (Not that I’m complaining there!)
I wanted to love this film. I wanted to love Tarzan, Jane—all of it. But the shallowness of characters, gaping plot holes, lack of motivation for the characters’ actions and unanswered questions were just too many to ignore. How did Tarzan learn English and speak with such a perfect British accent? How did he discover he was meant to go back to England? How did he and Jane get married? Why did he feel convicted to return to Africa? Give me answers!
The classic story was loved for being a drama, but this film was almost 100 percent action, leaving those of us craving character development disappointed. Alex Skarsgard, Tarzan, was fantastic with the script he was given. However, he would have been even better if the writers of this film had given him more of a challenge. He perfectly fit the brooding, resigned man a viewer would expect of a jungle-man-turned-aristocrat, but spent too much time pummeling soldiers to a pulp to fully develop the character. However, I give Skarsgard a 10/10 regardless of the script mistakes. He was the one that saved the film with his strong portrayal of a beloved hero.
In the end, I’d love to sit down with the writers of this film, grab their script and rip it to shreds while they watched. This movie was a missed opportunity, and I hope someone makes a deeper, more emotionally satisfying film soon. (With Alex Skarsgard, of course.)
