Category: Reviews

When Warner Bros announced they were making a new Tarzan film, the first question among fans was, “Do we really need another Tarzan movie?” The character has had more interpretations and reboots than just about any other pop culture figure from the 20^th Century and it felt that his relevance has passed. The answer, surprisingly then, is that yes, we needed this one.

The Legend of Tarzan, out now from Warner Home Entertainment, is very faithful to Edgar Rice Burroughs’ creation, honoring the time-honored story of the infant raised by apes, who just happened to be an English lord. The cleverness in the script from Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow) and Adam Cozad (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit) which picks up eight years later, after Lord John Greystoke (Alexander Skarsgård) has returned to England with Jane Porter (Margot Robbie) as his bride. They also steep the story in events that were contemporary at the time, things ERB usually avoided in favor of the fantastic.

The plight of the African tribes as the Dark Continent was seen as increasingly valuable and the slaughter of animals for their horns, tusks, and pelts started to shift the ecosystem’s balance. It took the efforts of an American, George Washington Williams (Samuel L. Jackson), to bring the world’s attention to these problems. The man was real and not just added for a token black role and thankfully, Jackson was the right figure to bring the character to life. Williams comes to England to ask Parliament to invite Greystoke to accompany him to Africa to investigate.

England is cold, gray, and dreary, stifling John and Jane so the decision is fairly easy and director David Yates does a masterful job contrasting civilization with the simpler, happier tribal life. Still, they’re there for a reason who is made manifest by Léon Auguste Théophile Rom (Christoph Waltz), another historically accurate figure and said to be the model for Joseph Conrad’s Colonel Kurtz. Rom is there to tilt the balance of African power toward King Leopold in Belgium, fueled by stealing a cache of diamonds deep in the Congo. In exchange for helping Rom, Chief Mbonga (Djimon Hounsou) has demanded Tarzan with whom he has a grudge.

And off we go. There are plenty of fine set pieces here that honors the traditions of Tarzan movies, along with winks and nods to the character’s worldwide legend. We have flashbacks to fill in the details of Tarzan’s past and have an over-the-top animal stampede in the third act. It’s far from a perfect film with Waltz playing a now stock villain complete with a dinner scene that seemed lifted wholesale from Raiders of the Lost Ark. The Mbonga subplot was thoroughly unnecessary and was more of a distraction since the theme of Great White Hero versus Great White Exploiter of the Natives was a clearer narrative.

The film is lush with the jungle life and great attention to the animal and tribal life helps ground the story. Skarsgård and Robbie have a wonderful chemistry and you believe in their bond and faith in one another. Jackson adds just enough comic relief to be an able sidekick along with representing the audience in his awe of the life he finds deep within the trees.

The film’s 1080p, AVC-encoded transfer to Blu-ray is sharp, clear, and helps convince you we are in 1890 Africa. Slightly better is the Dolby Atmos soundtrack.

The Blu-ray, DVD, Digital HD combo pack comes with a handful of special features although it is noteworthy that commentary, deleted scenes, and the like are absent in favor of Electronic Press Kit-worthy featurettes. The lack of cool features here is an example of Warner’s disappointment at the film’s undeserved failure at the box office. There’s Tarzan Reborn (15:10), an overview of the thinking behind this production; Battles and Bare-Knuckle Brawls, which examines three action scenes –Tarzan vs. Akut (5:15), Boma Stampede (4:53), and Train Ambush (4:57);  Tarzan and Jane’s Unfailing Love (6:01); Creating the Virtual Jungle (15:16); Gabon to the Screen (2:28) which stood in for the Congo; and, Stop Ivory (1:30), a PSA with the stars.

European filmmakers seem to favor theme and concept over actual execution which may be one reason why American audiences appear so resistant to the overseas offerings. For example, Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn had a fairly interesting idea about exploring female villains, inspired by the real life doings of mass murderer Countess Elizabeth Báthory. He coupled that notion with the universal themes of youth and beauty, setting his tale in Los Angeles and the fashion model field. Unfortunately, despite a strong American cast, the European sensibilities failed to bring the ideas to life and The Neon Demon arrived cold, sterile, and thoroughly uninvolving. The film is out no on home video courtesy of Broad Green Pictures.

We open with a striking visual of a blood-soaked Jesse (Elle Fanning), attired in blue, prone atop a settee. Of course, it’s for a shoot and the 16 year old has arrived on the West Coast in search of work as a model. She somehow met up with much older Dean (Karl Glusman) who shoots these test photos for her to use to sign with an agency.

Everyone tells us she is young, innocent, and has that certain something that will make her a star. Refn keeps telling us this and never, ever show us this magical quality so we’re left to wonder. Fanning’s deadpan performance makes her less human and more mannequin so any sympathy we should have for her is absent. So little is revealed about her past life that we really never get to know her, which is a shame.

Jesse befriends makeup artist Ruby (Jena Malone) who clearly has the hots for her. In turn, Ruby introduces her to models Sarah (Abbey Lee) and Gigi (Bella Heathcote). They see in Jesse that their sell by dates are rapidly approaching despite all the artificial work Gigi has proudly done to her body.

After she’s hired by Christina Hendricks, the only performer to infuse life into her character, Jesse is sent to top photographer Jack (Desmond Harrington), who forces her to strip nude and covers her in gold paint for the shoot. Somehow this gets her work but there’s a lot of narrative tissue missing from this. It also way too quickly transforms Jesse from innocent to narcissist, driving away Dean and robbing her of any sympathy. It’s all wasted and dull screen time.

Then you have her living in a squalid motel run by Hank (Keanu Reeves in a head-scratching bit part) where a mountain lion has entered her second floor room and destroyed it. Dean comes to her rescue here but the relationship goes nowhere.

There are so many interesting ideas in Refn’s head that it’s a shame they never made it to the script or screen. The film is intellectually vapid but visual stunning at times. Credit has to be given to production designer Elliott Hostetter, costume designer Erin Benach, and cinematographer Natasha Braier.

The narrative in the script by Refn, Mary Laws, and Polly Stenham is so disjointed, filled with long silent stares you wonder if the entire cast has gone mute. There is one restaurant scene where ideas are introduced but that’s the sum of intellectual heft. The notion that the fashion industry devours its young plays out literally in the latter stages. But first, we deal with sexual assault and a disturbing bit of necrophilia that does little to advance the plot.

The final fate of Jesse and the other models is morbid and vague and horrific after what seemed more like a psychological thriller. A talented cast is robbed of a chance to do good work thanks to a shoddy script and director less interest in people than themes.

The film was released via Amazon Films, and is now out on Blu-ray. The high definition transfer nicely captures the stylish visuals. The audio lets you hear every note of the annoying electronic score by Cliff Martinez. The spare special features are a director’s commentary, a trailer, and a brief look at the film.