Disney's Tarzan

[DinoDeLaurentiis]

Okay, this a DVD, she been a re-released this past a Tuesday inna the States, eh? Anna I was reminded of it inna the Mori's DVD column onna the main site... this is a what a he say, eh?

Ah, in a perfect world, they wouldn’t have had any songs in this film, and instead, they would have pushed the action/adventure thing further. Disney might have really changed the course of where they were going as a company, but instead, by pushing the songs and the wacky sidekicks, they undermined all the things about this that might have worked. It’s fascinating to revisit this to see just exactly where they went wrong.

I gotta to say, the Dino, he totally agree, no? I was a so looking forward to a this when a she first come out, a 'cos I was a sure that a the animated medium was a the best way to showcase a the adventure of a the ERB novellas, eh? I was excited by a the opening scenes anna thought a the opening song was actually a the perfect companion to a the action... I dinna mind it at all, eh? I thought a they nailed it inna the first 10 minutes...

... anna then the film, she alla went downhill a from a there pretty much, with a couple of a the exceptions. It's a too bad, no? I dinna like a the whole "surfer/skateboard" think with a the tree limbs... I thought a the one piece of a the action they did get a right was a during the Tarzan fight with a the Sabor, he grab a the vine inna his a one hand anna the spear inna the other, anna run along a the side of a the tree using the vine as a the support, eh? THAT was a the Tarzan moment.

I thought a they nailed a the jungle sequences inna the "Greystoke" movie but as a soon as a they arrived inna the England, she fall apart...

[Pacino86845]

I thought a they nailed a the jungle sequences inna the "Greystoke" movie but as a soon as a they arrived inna the England, she fall apart...

You mean when they went Elephant Man with the film and tried to get Christoph Lambert to speak English?

[DinoDeLaurentiis]

Heheh... no, more like a they stray from a the story inna the books. Uppa unna 'til a that point, the film, she was a pretty faithful to a the book.

[ZombieZoneSolutions]

Disney is still grappling with the fact that animated films don't always have to be a musicals for children... basically, they're still about 20 or 30 years behind the Japanese in general and about 1,000 years behind Production IG / Gainax in particular...

they'll catch up eventually, though.

btw, the anime version of the Little Mermaid from the 70s is FUCKING AWESOME! they kept the darkness of the original story in (where every step she takes is like walking on broken glass and at the end she commits suicide). it broke my heart when i was a wee lad.

[burlivesleftnut]

I don't remember anything about Tarzan other than Rosie O'Donnell did voice work. It was scarring.

[DinoDeLaurentiis]

Disney is still grappling with the fact that animated films don't always have to be a musicals for children...

Yes, but when a they try to break out of a the mold, the films, they tank, eh? "Treasure Planet," she was a the top-notch update of a the "Treasure Island," anna she bombed... "Atlantis" she tanked even a worse iffa you pardon the pun...

[ThisIsTheGirl]

Heh, remember the reaction of the South Park guys to losing out on Best Song Oscar to Phil Collins?

They were like, "we don't mind losing - but we do mind losing to Phil fucking Collins" - made me pampilash!

I've never read the books actually - care to briefly explain how the books differed from Greystoke, old timer?

[DinoDeLaurentiis]

The book, she was a more of a the pulp adventure, eh? Anna you reminded about how a the wild life inna the jungle, she make a Tarzan the man that a he is, eh? Like, a when he was a 12 years old, he was alla ready as a strong as a the grown man, eh? Anna he takes onna the adult male gorilla anna gets his ass a kicked, eh? Like, he almost a dies, but any other little kid would have a been toast, no?

Anyway... He donna go to a the England inna the first book... Jane, she comes a to him inna the jungle, not a the other way around, eh? Anna Clayton, he's a not a the bad guy... he's actually a pretty stand-uppa kind of a the chap. It's a been a long while since a the Dino read it, anna Clayton gets stuck inna the boat at sea with a some other guy who gets hungry anna tries a to eat him, eh? Great stuff, no!

[ThisIsTheGirl]

That sounds quite cool actually, perhaps I'll seek out the books.

PLus, you just made Phrase of The Week, dude:

<b>"he's actually a pretty stand-uppa kind of a the chap"</b>

Again, bellissimo!


I had to tell you that, even though this is my last ever post as Grando!!

*sniff*

I'll never forget how great it felt to be Grando for a week......

[Ribbons]

I was googling Tarzan and stumbled upon this poster. Très cool, no?




I agree that Tarzan had the potential to be a lot better than it was. I'm not even sure that the Phil Collins song at the beginning bothered me all that much, but the movie was eventually hamstrung by sticking too closely to the Disney formula.

As for the "children's medium" thing, I think that's a double-edged sword. American animation has become a ghetto for pandering children's entertainment, but at the same time, that's basically what audiences have come to expect. Hopefully when the next generation or two grows up, having been weaned on Japanese culture, it'll be easier for more mature animated fare to find a foothold in our country. And of course it is possible for children's entertainment to be mature (in the emotional way, not the "Rated M" way), it's just that, most of the time, it's not.

[kortanaskew]

Disney is still grappling with the fact that animated films don't always have to be a musicals for children

Musicals might attract children, but only the Lion KIng was aimed towards kid I'd say. Beauty and The Beast, Aladdin (mostly) Pocahontas, and Hunchbacks musical interludes were mostly geared to adults. The lyrics, the situation, the score were all very ADULT and soemthing you'd find on Broadway.

Of Course Lion King was the highest grossing out of all of these.

Yes, but when a they try to break out of a the mold, the films, they tank, eh? "Treasure Planet," she was a the top-notch update of a the "Treasure Island," anna she bombed... "Atlantis" she tanked even a worse iffa you pardon the pun...

Sorry Dino, but those movies bombed because they sucked Plain and Simple. The money from a DIsney movie comes from kids wanting to see the film again and again and froma parent not minding to see the film. But as beautiful as Atlantis and Treasure Planet were i could barely sit through the dull uninteresting plots.
Another failure with those ideas was they saw how much more Aladdin and Lion King grossed versus Beauty and The BEast and Little Mermaid.
Because it included boys who didnt wanna see sissy princess movies.
SO they geared Atlantis and Treasure Planet as a Disney Action films but they excluded what little girls like about Disney movies too.

I don't remember anything about Tarzan other than Rosie O'Donnell did voice work. It was scarring.

She is the sole reason, this movie wasn't as great as it could have been.
What was ocne supposed to be a SILENT character was given Rosie O'Donell's grating voice and the movie's sole MUSICAL NUMBER.

I think H.arry Knowle's original view for this was something like, This movie is great until Rosie character first speaks. Then it turns to shit. Pure shit.


Oh and nothing beats the Original DVD release. Back in the 90's when we had the DVD boom and animation was big. Disney would release Two Versions. One for Kids and One for animation Collectors. They did one one For Dinosaur and one For Tarzan.