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Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984)
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Overview
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Director:
Writers:
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Release Date:
30 March 1984 (USA)
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Plot:
A shipping disaster in the 19th Century has stranded a man and woman in the wilds of Africa. The lady is pregnant...
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Awards:
Nominated for 3 Oscars.
Another 3 wins
&
10 nominations
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NewsDesk:
User Comments:
Tarzan as Burroughs intended!
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Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Ralph Richardson | ... | The Sixth Earl of Greystoke | |
| Ian Holm | ... | Capitaine Phillippe D'Arnot | |
| James Fox | ... | Lord Charles Esker | |
| Christopher Lambert | ... | John Clayton / Tarzan, Lord of the Apes | |
| Andie MacDowell | ... | Miss Jane Porter | |
| Cheryl Campbell | ... | Lady Alice Clayton | |
| Ian Charleson | ... | Jeffson Brown | |
| Nigel Davenport | ... | Major Jack Downing | |
| Nicholas Farrell | ... | Sir Hugh Belcher | |
| Paul Geoffrey | ... | Lord John 'Jack' Clayton | |
| Richard Griffiths | ... | Captain Billings | |
| Hilton McRae | ... | Willy | |
| David Suchet | ... | Buller | |
| John Wells | ... | Sir Evelyn Blount | |
| Ravinder | ... | Dean |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
143 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Eastmancolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.20 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) |
Dolby (35 mm prints)
Certification:
Australia:PG |
Iceland:10 |
Canada:A (Ontario) |
Argentina:Atp |
Chile:TE |
Finland:K-8 |
France:U |
Norway:11 |
Spain:T |
Sweden:11 |
UK:PG |
USA:PG |
West Germany:12 |
Singapore:PG
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
This was Christopher Lambert's first English-speaking role.
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Goofs:
Quotes:
Sir Evelyn Blount:
Although the circumstances indicate that he is your grandson, we cant prove it. Of course, we, erm, might be able to do so if we could do some tests.
Sixth Earl of Greystoke: [Looking out the window] He's here!
[turns to Sir Evelyn]
Sixth Earl of Greystoke: If he's a Greystoke, I'll know him at a glance!
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Sixth Earl of Greystoke: [Looking out the window] He's here!
[turns to Sir Evelyn]
Sixth Earl of Greystoke: If he's a Greystoke, I'll know him at a glance!
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Movie Connections:
Referenced in "HBO First Look: I Dreamed of Africa: On Location (#7.6)" (2000)
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Soundtrack:
Symphony no. 1 in Ab major, op. 55
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If you are looking for a modern film version of Buster Crabbe or Johnny Weismuller's overcoming the machinations of unscrupulous, white safari guides or cunning, black tribesmen, while saving the animal kingdom, this is NOT the movie for you. This is a recounting of the Tarzan "legend" from its beginning in intelligent, adult terms. It is beautifully filmed and faithful to the Edgar Rice Burroughs stories.
Tarzan is no action hero, but a man torn between two worlds - the natural and the civilized. In a stunning performance, Christopher Lambert portrays this angst with absolute realism. If he slips up just once the cat will be out of the bag: the audience (especially the adult audience targeted by the film) will laugh, and the film will completely lose its grip. It will plummet into the cheesy depths. But Lambert never lets that happen. (Forget what you may think of him in other movies; when I saw this film at the theater on its original release, I thought he deserved an academy award.)
The supporting cast is uniformly excellent, as other commentators have noted. I disagree with most of them in that I didn't find anything wrong with Andie McDowell's performance. I wouldn't have nominated her for an academy award - the role is undemanding - but she is completely up to it, such as it is. I don't know why her voice was overdubbed, either.
The cinematography of the African segment of the tale is absolutely beautiful. It captures both the beauty of the African wilderness and the exotic expectation it holds in the collective imagination of those who have never been there. The scenery is lush and exotic, and the colors are vivid.
But this is also a "period" film, and the cinematography also magnificently depicts Victorian England - the countryside, the city and the interiors. The costumes are outstanding. The soundtrack is beautiful without being overwhelming or obtrusive.
There are some disturbing scenes - especially for animal lovers - but no more disturbing than a few scenes in Dances with Wolves. This is an excellent film about the conflict between civilization and nature, personified in the young Lord Greystoke, convincingly portrayed by Christopher Lambert.