Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)

A trader and his daughter set off in search of the fabled graveyard of the elephants in deepest Africa, only to encounter a wild man raised by apes.

Director:

W.S. Van Dyke

Writers:

Edgar Rice Burroughs (based upon the characters created by), Cyril Hume (adaptation)

Stars:

Johnny Weissmuller, Neil Hamilton, C. Aubrey Smith

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Johnny Weissmuller	...	Tarzan
Neil Hamilton	...	Harry Holt
C. Aubrey Smith	...	James Parker
Maureen O'Sullivan	...	Jane Parker
Doris Lloyd	...	Mrs. Cutten
Forrester Harvey	...	Beamish
Ivory Williams	...	Riano

Storyline

James Parker and Harry Holt are on an expedition in Africa in search of the elephant burial grounds that will provide enough ivory to make them rich. Parker's beautiful young daughter Jane arrives unexpectedly to join them. Harry is obviously attracted to Jane and he does his best to help protect her from all the dangers that they experience in the jungle. Jane is terrified when Tarzan and his ape friends first abduct her, but when she returns to her father's expedition she has second thoughts about leaving Tarzan. After the expedition is captured by a tribe of violent dwarfs, Jane sends Cheetah to bring Tarzan to rescue them...

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Plot Keywords:

racist | savages | tarzan | africa | swinging on a vine | 

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Taglines:

Breathless Romance Defying Convention

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 April 1932 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tarzan, the Ape Man

Filming Locations:

Lake Sherwood, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$652,675 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Black and White (Sepiatone)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The restored print shown on TCM on March 10,2018 , has a Betty Boop cartoon introducing "Popeye the Sailorman" (1932). Which was also shown in the theater 86 years ago.

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Goofs

After the safari people cross the river, the hippopotamuses follow them. Then Parker and Harry appear either with the guns lowered or with them pointed to the hippopotamuses.

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Quotes

James Parker: [James, Jane's father, starts to leave when she starts to undress] Yes, well, I-I-I-I I think I better be...
Jane Parker: Darling, don't be silly and embarrassed by me! Why, you bathed me some times and you spanked me too! Several times.
James Parker: Rarely, dearly.
Jane Parker: No, preferably, if you actually had. I wouldn't be so obstinate. And I am! Very obstinate.

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Alternate Versions

Colorized version was available... and shown on TNT

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Connections

Featured in I Dream of Jeannie: Fly Me to the Moon (1967)

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Soundtracks

Romeo and Juliet Overture
(1868) (uncredited)
Music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Excerpt played during final scene and closing credits

User Reviews

Tarzan The Ape Man/Tarzan And His Mate

This week I also watched the first two entries in the MGM Tarzan series by way of Warner's elegant 4-Disc Set. I actually took some persuading to purchase these films (the very positive online buzz is what got me), and I finally relented some time ago thanks to a generous 20% sale on the part of Deep Discount DVD!

Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised by them: solid (though primitive) production values, a bevy of exciting action sequences, and gleeful doses of eroticism and sadism made for great (if somewhat repetitive) fun. Johnny Weissmuller and Maureen O' Sullivan created a wonderful (and spontaneous) rapport and generally inhabited their roles very nicely, making them the screen's definitive incarnations of these characters.

TARZAN AND HIS MATE (1934; ***1/2) edges the original slightly because of the former's (necessary) tendency towards exposition: the sequel dives straight into action (though, curiously enough, it still takes quite a bit before Tarzan makes an appearance!) but also features lecherous villainy from Paul Cavanaugh and even takes time to develop the lovable personality of Cheetah (especially in a lengthy sequence where it is beset by assorted creatures while journeying through the jungle to alert Tarzan of the [invariably] impending danger)…and then, of course, there's that famous nude swimming scene! The lion-infested finale, too, is every bit as remarkable as the pygmy sequences at the climax of TARZAN THE APE MAN (1932; ***) – if anything, it's even more ambitious.

It's a pity, therefore, that the special effects (once considered ground-breaking) have not withstood the test of time: innumerable back-projection shots, the conveniently-placed (and thinly-disguised) series of trapeze which allow Tarzan to swing from one tree to the other, all-too-fake snakes and alligators, the rotoscoping of lions into a scene to make them appear as if they were fighting elephants, etc. Unfortunately TARZAN AND HIS MATE (and probably all the others that follow) took a ridiculous turn by having Jane mimic the famous Tarzan cry/yodel, which I felt to be an unwise decision on the part of the studio! Still, I do look forward to the rest of the series, hoping that they're at least as entertaining (even if reviews claim production values got progressively more lavish, and thus unrealistic, and the plots cornier).