Tarzan and the Mermaids (1948)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Robert Florey

Writers:

Edgar Rice Burroughs (characters)
Carroll Young (screenplay)

Release Date:

15 May 1948 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Tagline:

Tarzan at His Best !

Plot:

Boy is away at school in England. The high priest is trying to force a young girl to marry an evil pearl trader posing as the god Balu...

Plot Keywords:

Tarzan | Sequel | Disguise | Religious Cult | Temple

Cast

Johnny Weissmuller	...	Tarzan
Brenda Joyce	...	Jane
George Zucco	...	Palanth, the High Priest
Andrea Palma	...	Luana, Mara's Mother
Fernando Wagner	...	Varga, Pearl Trader
Edward Ashley	...	Commissioner
John Laurenz	...	Benji
Gustavo Rojo	...	Tiko, Mara's Fiancé
Matthew Boulton	...	British Inspector-General
Linda Christian	...	Mara

Also Known As:

Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan and the Mermaids (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

68 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #12894)

Filming Locations:

Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico

Company:

Sol Lesser Productions

Trivia:

Johnny Weissmuller's stunt double Ángel García was killed while performing the famous cliff dive into the ocean at Acapulco, Mexico.

Goofs:

Continuity: Tarzan wears shoes in this movie, and the shoes have the ability to appear and disappear between shots. When he goes after Mara and her kidnappers, he has on what appear to be sandals. During the times he is in the cave, the shoes appear and disappear. Later on, when Tarzan is attacked by an octopus, he has no shoes on, and after he kills it, the shoes are back on his feet.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Tarzan and the She-Devil (1953)

Soundtrack:

I'll Serenade Yoy with My Guitar

Weak ending

The finale of the Weissmuller Tarzan movies is a rather weak one. There are a few things that derail this film.

First, Tarzan spends much of the film wearing floppy sandals. In my opinion, any footwear on Tarzan, whether it be sandals or boots as sometimes portrayed, takes away from the character, which is supposed to be anti-civilization and pro-jungle.

Second, the character of Benji, as mentioned in a previous post, totally derails the movie as the comic foil. To me, his character is unnecessary to the film's plot.

Also, while Weissmuller still cuts a commanding figure as Tarzan, it's apparent that he was not in his best shape. Although in his later Jungle Jim movies, his physique had improved somewhat from this film.

The octopus battle is a terrific idea, but I think it should have been done in an earlier Weissmuller film when he was at his physical peak. Likewise, the battle, which takes only 30 seconds tops, would be much more thrilling if it was drawn out to 90 seconds to 2 minutes like the classic giant crocodile battle in Tarzan and His Mate.

And while Brenda Joyce as Jane and Linda Christian as Mara are overwhelmingly pleasing to the eye, it doesn't manage to salvage this last Weissmuller film - a disappointing ending to a great character run.