It’s a story we’re pretty much all familiar with – Tarzan, a man who was raised in the jungle by apes that took him in as a baby after his parents died.
In “The Legend of Tarzan,” it is the 1880’s and royal corruption brews beneath the surface. Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgard), now an adult, is living as John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke with his wife Jane (Margot Robbie).
His civilized life is interrupted when he is sent back to the Congo as a trade emissary. Unfortunately, he is at the center of the wicked plans of Captain Léon Rom (Christoph Waltz). Rom has made a deal to trade Tarzan in exchange for diamonds to a tribal chief who plans to butcher and eat him. Waltz does a great job playing a sleazy political criminal with beady eyes and a greasy mustache.
Samuel L. Jackson is also fun to watch as George Washington Williams, who accompanies Tarzan to the Congo when he follows up on his own suspicions.
While the film is quite enjoyable, and very pretty to look at (special thanks to Skarsgard). Tarzan isn’t as animalistic as you would expect, Jane lacks authentic emotion, and at times the CGI is a bit low quality.
“The Legend of Tarzan” is one of those short, sweet, and fun summer movies and is definitely worth watching. With political undertones of greed, slavery, and human destruction, it also has deeper value.
This is one that everyone can watch. It’s not too violent, it’s not to edgy, and it’s not too long. I give “The Legend of Tarzan” 3.5 out of 5 stars.
Second review by Jeniffer Gomez Pabon
We are all familiar with the exciting and touching story of Tarzan, where a ship capsizes and a baby survives when he is raised by apes; in time becoming the king of the jungle.
“The Legend of Tarzan” begins in the late 1880’s, and it’s been years since the man once known as Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgard) left the jungles of Africa to marry Jane Porter (Margot Robbie) and now He is known as John Clayton, Lord Greystoke, who lives an aristocratic life in London.
He has been invited back to the Congo Free State to serve as a trade emissary of the House of Commons but he refuses, until the American George Washington Williams (Samuel L Jackson) convinces him to go back to the Congo so they can investigate rumors of slave trading.
Meanwhile, back in Africa, we meet King Leopold’s worse-than-evil envoy Leon Rom (the always villainous Christoph Waltz), who does things with a rosary the church never taught and has made a devil’s bargain with Mbonga (Djimon Hounsou), chief of the powerful and sinister Mbolonga tribe.
I personally didn’t know what to expect of Alexander playing Tarzan, and please do not get me wrong He is incredible hot, I fall in love with him in Battleship and True Blood, but let’s be honest you don’t normally think of Nordic white men when you think of the Africa Jungle, but Alexander Skarsgard turns out to be an exemplary Tarzan, has the fine-boned features that enable him to project a quite gratifying air of dignity, stillness, even repose, making him the very model of an unflappable jungle monarch.
I know many people will say they hate Samuel L. Jackson, but in my opinion He provides the comedy part of the movie; the fake accent can be a bit annoying but stop bothering you when you start laughing without stopping.
It is far more difficult to satisfy modern audiences as they can be critical about every detail and forget that a movie cannot be perfect. It is even easier when a film is fun and filled with adventure, has amazing visuals, and animals that teach you a lesson of loyalty and love. The film provides several motional moments as well that show the darkest desires of human kind.
4.0 of 5.0
