Talkback: Is It a Good Idea to Reboot Tarzan?

tarzan300.jpgCue up Baltimora! According to Deadline, Warner Bros. has commissioned not one, but two scripts for a new Tarzan movie. Up and coming screenwriter Adam Cozad (the new Jack Ryan film) will handle one of the scripts, while Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow), will work on a different version of the film. All of which begs the question: Does anyone actually want a Tarzan reboot?

To be fair, Tarzan is one of pop culture's longest held infatuations. From the debut of the Edgar Rice Burroughs character in 1912 through the 1940s films with Johnny Weissmuller and up to 1999 and the animated Disney hit Tarzan (with music by Phil Collins), something Tarzan-related has been produced for nearly 100 years. And, still: would audiences care about seeing Tarzan swing through the jungle again -- especially after Shia LaBeouf so memorably ruined all things vine-swinging in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull? More seriously: Would the story -- which could easily be viewed as racist, sexist or some awful combination of both -- translate to modern tastes and sensibilities?

This is all still very early in the development process -- per Deadline, Warner Bros. would likely choose which script they liked best after both were completed -- but the questions seem worthy to ask. Have at Tarzan in the comments section below. (Apologies for getting Baltimora stuck in your head.)

· Warner Bros Has One, Maybe Two Tarzan Pic Swinging From The Vine [Deadline]



Comments

  • The Winchester says:

    At least they haven't mentioned it's taking place in the future.
    Yet...

  • BobJ says:

    There hasn't been any truly faithful adaptations of Burroughs' Tarzan ever. "Greystoke" got close, then turned him into a hooting moron. Oddly, one scene in the Disney film came close to capturing a bit of the action from the books, but that was it. Tarzan was violent, noble, articulate and bad-ass - and didn't swing on one damn vine in any of the books. Yeah, we do need a new Tarzan movie, but only one that goes to the source, and gets it right. We don't need some twit screen writer thinking it needs to be "updated" to make it "relevant."

  • bierce says:

    Another faithful adaptation of Tarzan is the last thing we need. Greystoke was awful, and boring. Do the opposite of trying to make Tarzan seem real -- a comic-book Tarzan. A big, popcorn adventure movie starring the superhero of the jungle. Full-out fantasy or nothing.