Main Cast: Johnny Weissmuller, Maureen O'Sullivan, Paul Cavanagh, Forrester Harvey
Release Year: 1934
Country: US
Run Time: 105 minutes
Plot
Most Tarzan enthusiasts consider 1934's Tarzan and His Mate to be the best of the Johnny Weissmuller-Maureen O'Sullivan Tarzan efforts. Certainly it is the sexiest, with Weissmuller and especially O'Sullivan wearing next to nothing for most of the film's running time. Picking up where 1932's Tarzan the Ape Man left off, the film's plot is set in motion by avaricious ivory hunter Paul Cavanaugh, who arrives in the African jungle in search of the fabled Elephant's Graveyard. Accompanying Cavanaugh is Neil Hamilton the former fiance of Jane Porter (Maureen O'Sullivan), who for the past two years has been living with jungle lord Tarzan (Johnny Weissmuller) without benefit of clergy (this is strictly a pre-code effort, as evidenced by Jane's bikini-like attire and the now-famous skinny-dipping sequence). Jane briefly entertains notions of returning to civilization, but opts for her blissful outdoor existence with Tarzan. The plot rears its ugly head again when Cavanaugh shoots Tarzan and leaves him for dead, the better to seek out the precious ivory unimpeded. Rescued by his simian friends, Tarzan races towards the elephant's burial site, where Cavanaugh and Hamilton have been eaten by lions and Jane is next on the menu. A convenient elephant stampede--heralded by that classic Tarzan ahh-ee-yahhhh-ee-yahhhh--saves Jane from the lion's fangs in the nick of time. Tarzan and His Mate was the last of MGM's "Tarzan" series to be targeted for a strictly adult audience: the remaining MGM Tarzans, made under stricter censorship guidelines, were geared for the whole family. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Considered by many the best of the Johnny Weissmuller Tarzan films, and arguably the best of any Tarzan movies, Tarzan and His Mate is also amazingly adult. It's not just because of the famous nude swimming scene, several other near-nude moments, and Jane's rather scanty wardrobe. It also has to do with the manner in which Tarzan and Jane relate to each other. Their words don't necessarily tell us anything, but the way they look at and handle each other indicates that theirs is a healthily erotic relationship. Mate also has a much better script than is usual for the series, with some very compelling moments involving Jane's commitment to Tarzan and their way of life. There's also plenty of action and adventure. Modern audiences may find some of the special effects quite dated, but if one can look past that, the sequences themselves are quite exciting. Director Jack Conway (who took over from credited Cedric Gibbons) does a sterling job, creating a tremendous amount of tension and suspense throughout, but finding time to concentrate on character development as well. Weissmuller, though somewhat limited as an actor, is in his element here and turns in one of his finest performances. But it's Maureen O'Sullivan who walks away with the acting honors; her work here is wonderful, much more detailed and nuanced than one expects in a "jungle flick." Tarzan and His Mate would be worth seeing even with a lesser actress, but with O'Sullivan it becomes required viewing. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
In 2003, the United States Library of Congress deemed the film "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant" and selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry.
The film begins with Tarzan and Jane living in the Jungle. Henry Holt, with business partner Marlin Arlington, meet up with them on their way to take ivory from an elephant burial ground. Holt tries to convince Jane, who was with him on his first trip to the jungle, to return with him by bringing her gifts from civilization including clothing and modern gadgets but she tells them she'd rather stay with Tarzan.
Later, when Tarzan refuses to let the men take ivory from the burial ground he is shot by Arlington and left for dead. Jane, thinking Tarzan is dead, contemplates leaving the jungle. Meanwhile, Cheeta and his ape friends nurse Tarzan back to health in time for him to stop the men who shot him.
Production notes
For an infamous swimming scene in this pre-code film, alternate footage was shot of Jane in various stages of dress, ranging from totally nude to fully covered. According to film historian Rudy Behlmer: "From all evidence, three versions of the sequence eventually went out to separate territories during the film's initial release. One with Jane clothed in her jungle loin cloth outfit, one with her topless, and one with her in the nude."[1]Maureen O'Sullivan did not play the naked Jane in the alternate footage; she was doubled by Olympic swimmer Josephine McKim, who competed in the 1928 games with Johnny Weissmuller. A version with alternate footage with Jane swimming nude or topless was restored in 1986 by Turner Entertainment for its video release.
Like other Tarzan/Weissmuller films, the elephants were Indian and not African. Large ears and tusks were fitted onto the animals in an attempt to make them look authentic.
Tarzan rides a rhinoceros in one scene - a first for film. The rhino, Mary, was imported from the Hagenbeck Zoo in Hamburg, Germany. Weismuller did the scene himself, sustaining only minor scrapes to sensitive places from Mary's rough hide.[2]
References
^Vieira, Mark A. (1999). Sin in Soft Focus: Pre-Code Hollywood. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc.. p. 180. ISBN 0-8109-4475-8.
^ See John Taliaferro's biography of Burroughs, Tarzan Forever; ISBN 0-684-83359-X; page 282.
