“These savages don’t appreciate your effort” says the whiny big breasted daughter of a scientist; said scientist is determined to break the power of the witch doctors in the area. The racism in this one is really irritating – I know, I know, race is a problematic issue in Tarzan films full stop but this one is all about how ignorant black savages reject white doctors. And the whites aren’t even nice – the daughter of the doctor is a whiny bigot, her boyfriend is a beefy bigot. And since when has Tarzan been on the side of progress? He’s always been a “keep out whitey” kind of conservationist.
This is a shame since the support cast includes two of the best black movie actors of the period – Woody Strode and James Edwards – but they are reduced to mere villain roles. Nonetheless both are effective and make strong antagonists, especially Edwards who has a charismatic, intelligent, dangerous presence; he would have made a great blaxploitation hero fifteen years later but those aren’t qualities Hollywood particularly wanted out of its black actors in 1950s Hollywood.
Gordon Scott gets his first Jane (Eva Brent) – they have a pash and Jane asks if he recognises that she has a new skirt. Brent’s not a bad Jane, quite pretty and game – she also has warmth, a quality that many of the post-Maureen O’Sullivan Janes lacked. (In defence of these Janes, like Brent they’re often not given much to do – here Jane spends most of her time sick.) There’s also a Boy like character (Richie Sorensen) – both he and Brent were reunited in Tarzan and the Trappers.
There’s a scene where whiny big boobs goes to Jane that she hates the jungle, and Jan explains she just fears the jungle – which is a fair enough point, but then Jane tells whiny big boobs that her job is to stand by her fellah’s side while he tries to bring light into darkness, etc, etc. What would Jane know about that? Didn’t Jane go to the jungle for the sex and freedom?
The quality of colour photography and use of stock footage is superior to Tarzan’s Hidden Jungle (though it still jars eg when Tazan squats down and talks to a tribe of pygmies). There’s a decent finale with Tarzan chained in a dungeon with Strode about to cut out his heart and a man-eating lion running loose, then a poison-drinking witch doctor ceremony involving Edwards – Scott was a good on-screen fighter, who moved quickly, even if he did have the biggest breasts of anyone in a Tarzan film.
This was cinema feature made by producer Sol Lesser. He soon sold out his interest in the film to new producers and not before time.
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