Tarzan and the Green Goddess (1938)

Directors:

Edward A. Kull
Wilbur McGaugh

Writers:

Edwin Blum (writer)
Edgar Rice Burroughs (characters)

Release Date:

1938 (UK)

Genre:

Action | Adventure

Tagline:

THRILLS AND EXCITEMENT BEYOND YOUR WILDEST DREAMS! (original ad - all caps)

Plot:

This is an edited version of the 1935 serial "The New Adventures of Tarzan."

Plot Keywords:

Tarzan | Guatemala | Idol | Lion | Ship

Cast

Bruce Bennett	...	Tarzan (as Herman Brix)
Ula Holt	...	Ula Vale
Frank Baker	...	Major Martling
Ashton Dearholt	...	Raglan (as Don Castello)
Lewis Sargent	...	George (as Lew Sargent)
Jack Mower	...	Capt. Blade

Runtime:

72 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | Norway:7

Company:

Burroughs-Tarzan Enterprises Inc.

Trivia:

This film is part of the public domain.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: This film supposedly takes place in Guatemala, Central America, yet footage of African animals such as rhinos and giraffes is shown.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Narrator: [narration] Guatemala, a strange and beautiful country many thousands of miles away, a country with lofty, snow-crested mountains, mighty rivers and deep lakes, quaint little villages and picturesque natives. This is Guatemala on the surface, what a tourist might see if a tourist could ever get there...

Movie Connections:

Followed by Tarzan's Revenge (1938)

Pretty Funny but Still Entertaining

I couldn't believe that rhinos, wildebeests, chimps and giraffes had invaded Guatemala. Couldn't they get South American stock footage! The other silly thing was Tarzan's yell...aaaaaahmazeeeee or something like that; it sounded more like Ma Kettle calling the kids to supper. I did like Herman Brix/Bruce Bennett as Tarzan but his loin cloth had belt loops and a belt. He was wearing pants in one scene so that may explain it. He definitely resurrected his career later with some really good roles like "Treasure of the Sierra Madre", etc. The acting was equal to the Weissmuller films, meaning pretty good but I think it was the producer and director who were at fault here. Watch the battle scene where the natives (wearing pants & shirts) carry swords but don't use them. I guess for its time and for kids it was an OK film, but nobody can "hold a candle" to the Weissmuller Tarzan films!