Tarzan the Ape Man

An expedition searching for the elephants' graveyard pushes deep into the African forest. Jane, the young woman with the party, is carried off by a man living in the trees who cannot speak. A relationship forms between them without language. W. S. Van Dyke directed for MGM. Olympic swimmer Johnny Weissmuller plays Tarzan, Maureen O'Sullivan plays Jane. Weissmuller's performance fixed the character's permanent screen form and grew into a series of eleven films. The best-known element is the Tarzan yell; the sound was produced in the studio by combining several recordings and the studio protected it as a trademark. Real African footage came from documentary material MGM had shot earlier and was combined with studio work. Its problem today is plain: African characters exist only as porters and threats, and the colonial gaze is everywhere in the story. Made before the production code was enforced, Jane's costume is far more revealing than in the later films. Who it is for: viewers curious about classic adventure and film history. Who it is not for: anyone troubled by the period's racial representation.