Tarzan's New York Adventure

Ask anyone over the age of 30 who is the best Tarzan and you may receive several answers. Ron Ely would be a popular choice; so would Gordon Scott. But I'll lay good money that the top answer would be Johnny Weissmuller.

By the time Tarzan's New York Adventure came to be made, Weissmuller had made the loin cloth his own and something new had to be done. As sacrilegious as it sounds, it was the taking of Tarzan out of his own environment that made this the best in his long list of jungle capers.

The plot is unimportant. Tarzan's son is taken away to New York and he travels there, accompanied by Jane, to bring him back. But it's the way that the whole premise is handled that ensures that this film will remain in the memory (it's remained in mine ever since I saw it, aged 7). You know Tarzan will win but you don't expect the way that he does it.

Weissmuller was a fine actor with little to say. And here, he doesn't need to say much. There's action, drama, and humour - everything one needs. Even the effects (apart from an occasional speeded up film shot) are sufficiently effective.