Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984)

A shipping disaster in the nineteenth century has stranded a man and woman in the wilds of Africa. The lady is pregnant, and gives birth to a son in their tree house. The mother dies soon ... See full summary »

Director:

Hugh Hudson

Writers:

Edgar Rice Burroughs (novel), Robert Towne (as P.H. Vazak)

Stars:

Christopher Lambert, Andie MacDowell, Ralph Richardson

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ralph Richardson	...	The Sixth Earl of Greystoke
Ian Holm	...	Capitaine Phillippe D'Arnot
James Fox	...	Lord Charles Esker
Christopher Lambert	...	John Clayton / Tarzan, Lord of the Apes
Andie MacDowell	...	Miss Jane Porter
Cheryl Campbell	...	Lady Alice Clayton
Ian Charleson	...	Jeffson Brown
Nigel Davenport	...	Major Jack Downing
Nicholas Farrell	...	Sir Hugh Belcher
Paul Geoffrey	...	Lord John 'Jack' Clayton
Richard Griffiths	...	Captain Billings
Hilton McRae	...	Willy
David Suchet	...	Buller
Ravinder	...	Dean
John Wells	...	Sir Evelyn Blount

Storyline

A shipping disaster in the nineteenth century has stranded a man and woman in the wilds of Africa. The lady is pregnant, and gives birth to a son in their tree house. The mother dies soon afterwards. An ape enters the house and kills the father, and a female ape takes the tiny boy as a replacement for her own dead infant, and raises him as her son. Twenty years later, Captaine Phillippe D'Arnot discovers the man who thinks he is an ape. Evidence in the tree house leads him to believe that he is the direct descendant of the Earl of Greystoke, and thus takes it upon himself to return the man to civilization.

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Plot Keywords:

tarzan | shipwreck | africa | ape | orphan | 

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Taglines:

A legendary hero - and the tale that's never been told!

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. WB Shop / Warner Archive

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

30 March 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Greystoke

Filming Locations:

Natural History Museum, South Kensington, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$45,900,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.,Edgar Rice Burroughs Inc.,WEA Records

Technical Specs

Runtime:

143 min (extended)

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The ape make-up and effects took up about seven million dollars of the forty-six million dollar budget.

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Goofs

The cognitive and speech centers of the brain shut down if they are not stimulated. After a certain age, Tarzan wouldn't have been able to say more than a few words, let alone learn two entire languages.

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Quotes

John Clayton: Half of me is the Earl of Greystoke...
John Clayton: the other half is WILD!

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Alternate Versions

For laserdisc, the Extended Version was transferred in a 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio, but the pan-and-scan videocassette was open-matted and cropped on the edges. It is unknown if this Extended Version is Hugh Hudson's director's cut or another edition, possibly released internationally in 1984.

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Connections

Referenced in The Legend of Tarzan: Tarzan Reborn (2016)

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Soundtracks

The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, Is Ended
(uncredited)
Written by John Ellerton
Music by Clement C. Scholefield

User Reviews

Excellent novel, good film.

Greystoke stays close to the first Tarzan novel which makes for a striking contrast between this film and earlier Tarzan flicks.

'Christophe' sticks to his French accent for most of this film, which is a relief as he concentrates on his acting and, for the most part, gets it spot on. His reversion to ape behaviour in moments of emotional stress is funny and touching. Ralph Richardson's potrayal of the Sixth Earl is full of humour and subtlety, only to be expected from a master of the art. Ian Holm, again, a masterful performance. They put Andie MacDowell to shame.

The first half is mainly in the jungle and is fascinating to watch. A huge amount of research about ape behaviour is put to entertaining use. It comes to a close when some amusingly nasty English explorers and a disdainful Belgian appear in the jungle. The second half, when Johnny (Lambert) is introduced to Victorian society touches on what it means to be 'civilized'. He meets his grandfather and is expected to take his place in society but then discovers what society is like.

A great adaptation and an entertaining film.