"Why is it people don't ride zebras?" 26 December 2017
Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgård) is convinced to return to Africa so he might help the Congolese people facing enslavement and other atrocities at the hands of Belgian diamond miners. Tarzan is accompanied by George Washington Williams (Samuel L Jackson) and, against his wishes, his wife Jane (Margot Robbie). Soon after their arrival in Africa, Jane is kidnapped by a man named Rom (Christoph Waltz). Rom has a plan to turn Tarzan over to an African chief, Mbonga (Djimon Hounsou), who wants to see Tarzan punished for the death of his son. Rom intends to use Jane as bait to lure Tarzan into Mbonga's hands for a fortune in diamonds in return. As you'd expect, Tarzan sets out to rescue Jane.
My little, poorly written plot summary for The Legend of Tarzan actually makes the film sound better than it is. The plot here is paper thin. A lot of what goes on makes no sense at all and characters generally behave in an irrational fashion with little motivation. All are 2D characters without much depth. The showdown between Tarzan and Mbonga should have been a highlight. Instead, it's one of weakest sequences in the film. It's over before it begins. It's frustrating to watch a film that could and should have been much better had anyone spent more time developing a solid and compelling story.
Beyond my issues with the plot, I wasn't crazy about the film's structure. Parts of the story are told in a series of increasingly frustrating flashbacks. Most of the flashbacks relate to Tarzan's origin story - something that felt unnecessary to include in this movie. Not only are the flashbacks annoying but they do a pretty poor job of explaining a backstory we're all familiar with. They only serve to bloat the film and unnecessarily increase the runtime.
The acting is all over the place. Skarsgård makes for a weak Tarzan. Oddly, he seems uninterested throughout most of the movie. Robbie really doesn't have much to do and is wasted. Jackson does what he usually does - he plays Williams just like every other character he plays. He seems horribly miscast to me. Hounsou and Waltz are the acting highlights for me. With more developed characters and better defined motivations, they're performances would have been even better.
Even though I've already listed a number of negatives, the biggest weakness in The Legend of Tarzan is the overuse of some really bad looking CGI. Most of the animals look terrible. The gorillas, lions, wildebeests (especially the wildebeests) - none of them look convincing. There's not a "real" looking animal to be found in the entire movie. But the worst example of poor CGI can be seen in Tarzan's swing through the trees. A hand drawn cartoon would have looked more realistic. It's some of the worst CGI I've seen. And speaking of Tarzan swinging through the trees - the whole notion is ridiculous. Tarzan goes from one conveniently placed vine to the next at a speed that would have made a cheetah envious. It's insulting.
Despite everything I've written, it's obvious from my rating that I didn't find the entire film a total flop. There are moments here and there that work - Rom's diner scene with Jane being one example. So even though I've spent several paragraphs discussing the issues I had with The Legend of Tarzan, I'm still rating the film a 4/10.
My little, poorly written plot summary for The Legend of Tarzan actually makes the film sound better than it is. The plot here is paper thin. A lot of what goes on makes no sense at all and characters generally behave in an irrational fashion with little motivation. All are 2D characters without much depth. The showdown between Tarzan and Mbonga should have been a highlight. Instead, it's one of weakest sequences in the film. It's over before it begins. It's frustrating to watch a film that could and should have been much better had anyone spent more time developing a solid and compelling story.
Beyond my issues with the plot, I wasn't crazy about the film's structure. Parts of the story are told in a series of increasingly frustrating flashbacks. Most of the flashbacks relate to Tarzan's origin story - something that felt unnecessary to include in this movie. Not only are the flashbacks annoying but they do a pretty poor job of explaining a backstory we're all familiar with. They only serve to bloat the film and unnecessarily increase the runtime.
The acting is all over the place. Skarsgård makes for a weak Tarzan. Oddly, he seems uninterested throughout most of the movie. Robbie really doesn't have much to do and is wasted. Jackson does what he usually does - he plays Williams just like every other character he plays. He seems horribly miscast to me. Hounsou and Waltz are the acting highlights for me. With more developed characters and better defined motivations, they're performances would have been even better.
Even though I've already listed a number of negatives, the biggest weakness in The Legend of Tarzan is the overuse of some really bad looking CGI. Most of the animals look terrible. The gorillas, lions, wildebeests (especially the wildebeests) - none of them look convincing. There's not a "real" looking animal to be found in the entire movie. But the worst example of poor CGI can be seen in Tarzan's swing through the trees. A hand drawn cartoon would have looked more realistic. It's some of the worst CGI I've seen. And speaking of Tarzan swinging through the trees - the whole notion is ridiculous. Tarzan goes from one conveniently placed vine to the next at a speed that would have made a cheetah envious. It's insulting.
Despite everything I've written, it's obvious from my rating that I didn't find the entire film a total flop. There are moments here and there that work - Rom's diner scene with Jane being one example. So even though I've spent several paragraphs discussing the issues I had with The Legend of Tarzan, I'm still rating the film a 4/10.
4/10
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