Tarzan Escapes (1936)

Director:

Richard Thorpe
(more)

Writers:

Edgar Rice Burroughs (characters)
Cyril Hume (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

6 November 1936 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Tagline:

It's New! It's amazing! 2 years to produce!

Plot:

An expedition seeking to bring Jane back to civilization, and Tarzan into captivity, gets more than it's bargained for.

Plot Keywords:

Tarzan | Expedition | Jungle | Hunter | Attack

Cast

Johnny Weissmuller	...	Tarzan
Maureen O'Sullivan	...	Jane Parker
John Buckler	...	Captain Fry
Benita Hume	...	Rita
William Henry	...	Eric
Herbert Mundin	...	Rawlins
E.E. Clive	...	Masters
Darby Jones	...	Bomba
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Everett Brown	...	Hostile Native Chief (uncredited)
Johnny Eck	...	Gooney-Bird (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard Thorpe
John Farrow		(uncredited)
James C. McKay		(uncredited)
George B. Seitz		(uncredited)
William A. Wellman		(uncredited)

Writing credits
Edgar Rice Burroughs		(characters)
Cyril Hume		(screenplay)
Jack Cummings		contributing writer (uncredited)
Edwin H. Knopf		contributing writer (uncredited)

Produced by
Sam Zimbalist	....	associate producer
Jack Cummings	....	producer (uncredited)
Phil Goldstone	....	producer (uncredited)
Bernard H. Hyman	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
William Axt		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Leonard Smith		(photographed by)

Film Editing by
W. Donn Hayes
Frank Lawrence		(uncredited)

Art Direction by
Elmer Sheeley

Set Decoration by
Edwin B. Willis		(uncredited)

Art Department
James E. Newcom	....	art effects (uncredited)

Sound Department
Douglas Shearer	....	recording director
T.B. Hoffman	....	sound (uncredited)
Standish J. Lambert	....	sound (uncredited)
M.J. McLaughlin	....	sound (uncredited)
Ralph A. Pender	....	sound (uncredited)
Ralph Shugart	....	sound (uncredited)
Michael Steinore	....	sound (uncredited)
R.L. Sterling	....	sound (uncredited)
Charles E. Wallace	....	sound (uncredited)
Don T. Whitmer	....	sound (uncredited)

Special Effects by
A. Arnold Gillespie	....	special effects (uncredited)
Tom Tutwiler	....	photographic effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Norm Taylor	....	stunt double (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Bob Gough	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Charles Salerno Jr.	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Albert Scheving	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Music Department
William Axt	....	musical director (uncredited)
Sol Levy	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)

Other crew
Ernest Wilson	....	tutor: Swahili, Mr. Weissmuller (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (controlled by Loew's Incorporated)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1936) (USA) (theatrical) (controlled by Loew's Incorporated)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1954) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• ClassicLine (2003) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Continental Home Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1992) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (19??) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (2004) (Brazil) (DVD)

Also Known As:

The Capture of Tarzan (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

UK:U | West Germany:12 | Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | Norway:7 | USA:Approved (PCA #1563) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Filming Locations:

Backlot, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

The original director was James C. McKay, who filmed many gruesome scenes. In July 1936, he was replaced by John Farrow who practically re-shot the entire film. There were also cast and crew changes: Granville Bates was dropped from the cast, while Herbert Mundin was added, playing a new character. Darby Jones replaced Everett Brown as "Bomba"; Elmer Sheeley replaced Cedric Gibbons as art director; A. Arnold Gillespie replaced James Basevi for special effects; Tom Tutwiler replaced 'Max Fabian' for photographic effects; and Charles Salerno Jr. replaced cameramen Virgil W. Vogel and Walter Strenge.

Goofs:

Continuity: The stalk of the flower Tarzan gives to Jane shortens from one shot to another.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Riverboat Captain: All right. Tie her up. Make her fast. Pull her in, boys.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in A vadon fia (1944)

Soundtrack:

Cannibal Carnival

Not great, but still fun.

Nasty hunter Captain Fry (John Buckler) leads an expedition to Tarzan's stomping ground with the aim of capturing the ape-man and exhibiting him in England. Unaware of Fry's nefarious intentions, Jane's cousins, Eric and Rita (William Henry and Benita Hume), tag along for the journey hoping to convince their relative to return to England in order to help them claim the fortune that has been left to them in a will.

It's back to the Mutia escarpment for more jungle action in the third of the Weismuller Tarzan films; unfortunately, this time around, much of what made the first two films so much fun—the gloriously un-PC violence and steamy sexuality—is missing thanks to the introduction of the Hays code, Hollywood's moral guidelines.

So instead of Maureen O'Sullivan giving us an eyeful in her animal skin bikini, we have her wearing a much more demure dress, and when the film gets down to the dispatching of native bearers, much of the nastiness happens off-screen; the film also suffers due to a troubled production which saw much of the original film being re-shot and re-edited. It all amounts to a rather tame offering that lacks the thrills and spills of Weismuller's earlier outings as the affable ape-man (even the nasty execution via tree that horrified me as a child was less gruesome than I remembered).

Still, the film remains fairly watchable thanks to the chemistry between Weismuller and O'Sullivan, some funny antics from Cheetah the Chimp (he teases lion cubs, attempts to ride a zebra, and laughs as comedy relief Rawlins tries to master swinging on a vine), the impressive sight of Tarzan's 'town-house' (complete with elephant powered elevator!), and one particularly bizarre scene featuring a weird dodo-like bird (which I presume must have been performed by a man with no legs, walking on his hands in a feathered suit!!!).

6.5 out of 10, rounded up to 7 for IMDb.