DVD Corner

Tarzan Of The Apes Blu-ray Review

“Tarzan Of The Apes” is a respectable piece of cinematic history.  

Based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs novel of the same name, 1918’s “Tarzan Of The Apes” is the first Tarzan film ever made. This silent adventure film begins with Lord and Greystoke (John and Alice Crayton) bound for British Africa. Their ship is overtaken by mutineers and John, Alice, and a heroic sailor (Binns) are essentially abandoned on an island shortly thereafter. Binns is captured by Arab slave traders while John and Alice survive in the wild and eventually have a son (Tarzan). John and Alice pass away and 2 apes (Kerchak and Kala) who recently lost a baby raise the baby Tarzan. As Tarzan grows from a baby to a boy to an adult, Tarzan meets another human like himself in the form of an older Bimms who has escaped capture. Binns teaches Tarzan about being a human before eventually returning home. Binns tells the story of the jungle man which leads to an expedition of scientists led by Dr. Porter and his daughter Jane. Tarzan becomes infatuated with Jane and the two develop a bond. Elsewhere in the story are subplots involving Natives, the death of Kala and Jane being kidnapped.

It’s a bit hard to judge director Scott Sidney’s “Tarzan Of The Apes” given that it is half of a movie. The original cut ran 2 hours but the surviving print here runs only an hour. It definitely feels like a truncated movie with an all too abrupt ending that adapts the first half of Edgar Rice Burrough’s novel. As an adaptation it is a respectable one, but it’s nowhere near the quality of the Johnny Weissmuller starring Tarzan films that made the character a household name. Still, it’s largely faithful to the source material, the Louisiana location shooting does give the film the right vibe, the cast is mostly on point and the film deserves to be remembered as the first to tackle the beloved Tarzan character.

Speaking of the cast, the two actors who portray Tarzan here do an admirable job for the time period. Gordon Griffith (who plays the Tarzan boy) was believable while Elmo Lincoln puts his own spin on the character. Lincoln is a more muscular and physical actor. He certainly looks like a King of the Jungle. George B. French delivers a solid performance as Binns as does Thomas Jefferson as Mr. Porter. Enid Markey is the only miscast person here as Jane. She’s too mousey and doesn’t have enough chemistry with Lincoln. 

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.33:1 1080p. How does it look? The 2K restoration does feature improved image quality, but the print is still riddled with scratches and flaws.

Audio Track: 2.0 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? The score sounds decent enough here.

The big extra feature here is a bonus Tarzan movie- 1928’s “The Adventures Of Tarzan” starring Elmo Lincoln (which is adapted from the serial).

October 1, 2025 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Edgar Rice Burroughs, Elmo Lincoln, Film Masters, Silent Film, Tarzan, Tarzan Of The Apes Blu-ray Review