(This review may contain spoilers).
I think I must have watched the Disney version of Tarzan, though I don’t really remember much of it. My niece said she wanted to see this because it was real-life and she thought it might be darker.
I thought this was a really intriguing take on the story of Tarzan, as even though there were flashbacks to his life in the jungle, the majority of the movie took place after Tarzan’s (or John’s) ‘civilisation’. It was an interesting take on the story.
I did enjoy seeing the relationship between Jane and John, though I did kind of feel that Jane didn’t seem to take her safety (and the safety of other characters) very seriously. I would have liked to see her using her mind and words, as a contrast to the action prevalent in Tarzan moving through the jungle.
It was really good to see the friendship that formed between John and George Washington. It was good to see that Samuel L. Jackson didn’t make use of the intense shouting I’ve often seen in his roles. I would, however, have liked to see more personality developed in the tribe members.
There was a lot of really good action in this film and a few good comedy moments. I really liked seeing the contrast in the different atmospheres… and it was also good to see that Tarzan had obvious scars and that the background of some of those scars was shown.
I did think there was a bit too much exposition in Jane explaining Tarzan’s background, especially as the flashbacks imparted most of the information Jane did as well.
It was good to see how John was able to use the animals and knowledge of his environment to his advantage. I did think that the actor who played him was very intense… and I would have liked to see some of the development that was behind Tarzan becoming the more civilised John.
I did enjoy this movie and so did my niece. I’d probably be quite happy to watch this again in the future.
Ink of Blood 