Tarzan's Hidden Jungle (1955)

To me, this movie is perfection.

the audience applauded

That was an excellent one.

Just perfect...

I just caught this on TCM Saturday run of Tarzan films. No doubt I must have seen this during a Saturday matinee because I loved Tarzan books and movies when I was a kid but this is a rather slow moving Tarzan and in retrospect it seems the film was aimed at a more sophisticated audience and not just eight year olds. Real fans knew that Tarzan was the well educated Lord Greystoke who constantly yielded to his need to return to the jungle but this Tarzan is still monosyllabic The action here is minimal; not the Tarzan a kid wants to imitate in their backyard play.

Known Most Notably as the Debut Film for Gordon Scott's Stint as Tarzan, but Also for RKO on the Way Out of the Business and Refusing Any Budget for the Thing, and Scott Meeting and Marrying Vera Miles on the Set.The Movie has No Jane, No Boy, and Only Cheta Returns to Pal Along with Tarzan as He Once Again Goes Up Against White Hunters Who are on a Safari of Death for Profit. The Hidden Jungle of the Title Refers to an Across the River Sanctuary for the Critters Helped by a Friendly Native Tribe that Exchanges Remedies with a United Nations Doctor.Jack Elam and His Bad Guys Run Up Against the Natives and Tarzan and the Result is Predictable but Fun. The Series Would Get Better with Gordon Scott Becoming More Articulate and the Stories More Diversified. Glorious Color Became a Tarzan Standard and the Franchise, Once Again, Had Some Critical and Fan Success Following This One.

Gordon Scott's debut film and his first time playing Tarzan, is not as bad as I had read. The story is quite simple (and repeated in his next two movies, with tension between an African witch doctor and a white physician), the pacing is OK, the running time is thankfully short, and the budget as low as in most of Tarzan's films of all colors and casts. Vera Miles is an attractive leading lady, although her attention mostly goes to her doctor boss, dully played by German Peter van Eyck. I believe that the best asset of this Tarzan motion picture is Scott's freshness and spontaneity. In the following entry (the first Tarzan film in color, "Tarzan and the Lost Safari") the budget made the hair gel and the pancake make-up too evident.

Gordon Scott makes his debut here as the king of the jungle in this acceptable but routine Tarzan flick. TARZAN'S HIDDEN JUNGLE isn't as bad as some of this film detractors claim. As far as the RKO Tarzan flicks go, TARZAN'S HIDDEN JUNGLE is about average. What disappoints most Tarzan fans, is that one would think with RKO introducing a new actor in the role of Tarzan, they would have made this film a little something more. The film has a good supporting cast, but the production values are slightly below par. One would think the studio heads at RKO would have given this film a higher budget considering they were introducing a "new" Tarzan. I've heard that producer Sol Lesser tried to convince RKO to make this film in color, but the studio brass refused. Lesser, who owned the screen rights to Burroughs famous character, departed from RKO after twelve years of making Tarzan flicks for RKO, and moved on to make Tarzan flicks with Scott for other studios. I suspect it was RKO's refusal to allow him to shoot this film in color and the usual low budget that made Lesser part company with RKO. The next Tarzan flick (TARZAN AND THE LOST SAFARI) was in color and had a higher budget.Note: this film does have one scene thats a real gem. Tarzan rescues Vera Miles from quick sand and then tries to wash the mud off her. She tells Tarzan she needs a bath, so Tarzan agrees and tosses the startled Miss Miles in the drink.