Tarzan and the Amazons (1945)

A group of archaeologists asks Tarzan to help them find an ancient city in a hidden valley of women. He refuses, but Boy is tricked into doing the job. The queen of the women asks Tarzan to help them.

Director:

Kurt Neumann

Writers:

Hans Jacoby (screenplay) (as John Jacoby), Marjorie L. Pfaelzer (screenplay)

Stars:

Johnny Weissmuller, Brenda Joyce, Johnny Sheffield

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Johnny Weissmuller	...	Tarzan
Brenda Joyce	...	Jane
Johnny Sheffield	...	Boy
Henry Stephenson	...	Sir Guy Henderson
Maria Ouspenskaya	...	Amazon Queen (as Mme. Maria Ouspenskaya)
Barton MacLane	...	Ballister (as Barton Maclane)
Donald Douglas	...	Andres (as Don Douglas)
Steven Geray	...	Brenner
J.M. Kerrigan	...	Splivens
Shirley O'Hara	...	Athena

Storyline

Tarzan and Boy joyfully welcome Jane back to Africa from her stay in London. On the same boat with her is Sir Guy Henderson, an archaeologist who is on an expedition to find the lost city of Amazon women. Not everyone in the expedition is there for its scientific value and some are simply in search of gold. Tarzan knows where the city is located but is a friend of the Amazons and refuses to share that with anyone. Boy, who secretly followed Tarzan during his last visit to the city, naively shows them the way leading to an inevitable clash. Tarzan comes to the rescue.

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Plot Keywords:

reunited with family | city | tribe | leopard | predator | 

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Taglines:

Hidden City Of Women... Forbidden To Men!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 April 1945 (USA)

Also Known As:

Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan and the Amazons

Filming Locations:

Baldwin Park Lodge, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Sol Lesser Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is the first Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan which doesn't feature the famous yodeling yell; neither from Tarzan himself, nor the altered versions from Jane nor Boy. When Jane is in trouble stuck below a tree, she simply calls out "Tarzan!"

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Goofs

When Athena is struck in the back with the knife, she falls over but manages to survive long enough to strike the gong. The entire time she falls right up until she strikes the gong, no knife is seen in her back, nor is one seen on the ground.

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Quotes

Tarzan: Boy think too much. Forget to laugh.

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Connections

Followed by Tarzan and the Huntress (1947)

User Reviews

"Sun like gold. Too much sun make people blind."

The ninth movie in the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan series (and third since the series moved from MGM to RKO) is also the first to feature an actress besides Maureen O'Sullivan playing Jane. In the first two RKO films, Jane was off helping with the war effort in England. Now it's time for her to come home but, alas, O'Sullivan wouldn't return to the part so it was recast with Brenda Joyce. Maureen is certainly missed but Brenda does a decent job and would play Jane for the remainder of the Weissmuller films. As I said, Jane returns home to Africa but she doesn't come alone. She brings with her some archaeologists who are interested in the lost city of the Amazons, a tribe of women warriors. Tarzan knows where the city is but won't tell them. If you've seen even one Tarzan movie before this, you should know the outsiders won't leave it alone. They convince Boy to lead them to the Amazon city, where they are not greeted with open arms.

I noticed Johnny Sheffield, the actor playing Boy, is in the middle of puberty by this point and his voice is noticeably deeper than the last film in the series. It's the sort of thing you probably only notice when you watch the series back to back. Sheffield's enjoyable, though Boy's a bit of a brat in this one. Cheeta, the series' regular scene stealer, is great as always. Henry Stephenson plays the kindly old lead archaeologist who has no clue how rotten his friends are. Barton MacLane makes a particularly slimy heavy. The Amazons are lovely young women in skimpy (for the time) outfits. Nothing wrong with that. Pretty Shirley O'Hara is the one given the most to do. Their leader is the awesome Maria Ouspenskaya. She's always a treat to watch. Nice sets and matte paintings. The Amazon stuff is lots of fun. As with all of the RKO Tarzan movies, this is a solid escapist adventure film. Nothing deep but good to watch on a lazy weekend.