Customer Reviews

Tarzan [DVD] [1999]

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Being a Disney fan I am slightly prejudice, however sincerely this is a great film! The animation is superb bringing to life Tarzan, Jane and all the other 'secondary' Disney characters that usually steal the show. I found the film both laugh-out-loud funny as well as touching, hitting on genuinely important issues in an entertaining way. This film is a must for both the little and big kids of the family!

A man, who has spent his whole life being raised by gorillas, must discover who he is and where he belongs when humans visit the jungle where he lives.

In perhaps one of the most underappreciated Disney films of the 90's, viewers are given an insight into the life of a man who must question who and what he is in the face of danger and humanity. The plot is a very romantic tale about the human spirit and has a very intriguing point of view upon humans, who are again in the darkness as villains in this Disney picture.

Tarzan embodies the good nature about the human spirit with a heroic and loyal ideology towards the lives of others, but the humans who come to investigate the gorillas such as Clayton are the epitome of evil, and through the use of good vs evil and loyalty does the plot excel as a sharp and sentimental story about finding who you truly are.

Humour is thrown in as good measure with the very enjoyable Jane, Terk and Tantor who all have their moments in this lovable tale.

Though the humour is frequently used throughout, this is one of the most serious Disney films of recent years, and that is shown through the use of man against animal, and the inhuman nature of the humans, a very serious issue and one particular shot towards the end when the gorillas are all looking down, all sitting peacefully in their trees, all quiet and minding their own business, shows them as they are, extremely beautiful animals who are being disturbed by a group of violent money thirsty selfish humans.

Its sad that there aren't many 2D animations being made now, as classics such as these look so brilliant and are basic, but with technology being so advanced, it is hard to see a way back into this brilliant format.

The soundtrack by Phil Collins is exceptional and one of the best ever created for a Disney picture.

Though the plot can be inconsistent and the direction not on top form, it is a sentimental and humours tale which examines the differences between animal and man.

8/10

Being an avid Disney DVD fan I've added this Collector's addition to my collection.

The film is very good and in the typical Disney mould. There's animal's that talk and Tarzan overcomes his enemy to get the girl.

The extra's leave a lot to be desired. There's how the film was made etc, but not much for the kids, like with say Beauty & The Beast Collector's Edition.

My tip is to buy the single edition, unless your mind is set on getting every Disney DVD like me...

Every once in a while Disney release something special. Tarzan is indeed up there with the likes of The Lion King. This is Disney animation at its best with never before seen techniques that just blow you away. Driver and Blessed contribute some great voice work while Phil Colins' music is spot-on. The score music is also quite beautiful which adds to the great world that the animators have created. Disney have out-done themselves and Tarzan would be difficult to top. As for the DVD itself, this edition is the only one to buy with so much content. Like Men in Black and Fight Club this is how DVD's should be and it's what your player needs to be fed regularly !

VIDEO QUALITY
Extremely poor. This film was released in 1999, it is a digital film and it doesn't need any clean-up to look as good as the old Disney classics (Lady and the Tramp, Sleeping Beauty etc). That makes matters worse, as this is the worst transfer any Disney animated feature has had on Blu-ray. There is a constant flicker on the image, like you're turning on neon lights. It's very annoying and during night-time scenes or on dark backgrounds (hair, gorilla fur) you simply can't ignore it.

AUDIO QUALITY
It gets worse apparently. The audio mix is just the old 5.1 Dolby Digital mix that was present on the DVD as well.

EXTRAS
You get some awful extras like Disneypedia and the standard Music Videos. No making of, no audio commentary, no cast interviews, nothing.

CONCLUSION
This will probably drop so don buy right away. I suggest you wait and grab it for less than 10 pounds (I would give 5-7 for this). It's a real shame cause this needed a little care and it would be a great release!

When I saw Disney were releasing Tarzan on Blu-Ray I immediately ordered it, I always enjoyed the movie and based on Disney's previous efforts on the format I didn't hesitate, perhaps I should have!

Now let's get one thing straight, the picture is definitely an improvement over the previous home releases, colours are vibrant and there is a massive improvement in detail, sadly that's as positive as one can be. Image consistency is a big issue, not just from one sequence to the next but within the same scene, at it's best it's subtle, at it's worst it's like a flashing strobing effect! Whatever the case it's always there. The next problem is quite baffling given that it's a problem commonly found on DVD. Compression artifacts are prevalent in the form of macro-blocking, just watch any scene featuring Kerchak (Tarzan's adoptive Father)and it's there rearing it's ugly head, in fact anything that's darkly coloured has some macro-blocking.
It's such a shame given how promising the the image could have been had Disney put in a little effort!

Oh by the way, did I mention the sound? It's standard definition Dolby Digital, fantastic bang for your buck eh? Speaking of which don't expect much in the way of extras, Disney have scoured through their vaults to bring you: a deleted scene, Music Video & Disneypedia: Living In The Jungle.

Just one last note, if you've been dutifully collecting the Disney classics on Blu-ray, They're not doing digital copies, or those lovely slip cases anymore, just to let you know.

This is a first review for me, and was prompted to do so for two reasons. 1 Most of the reviews attached to this product listing are for the DVD set and NOT the blu ray! (Why do amazon do that??)and 2, the negative reviews of the transfer for those blu ray reviews that are out there.

So as someone who is an animation fan I thought I'd collect the "Disney Animation Canon" on Blu Ray especially as they are releasing them to build up a nice numbered collection. Having read a couple of reviews about flickering on the transfer of Tarzan, I was somewhat put off but decided to chance it anyway - all I can say is that if you look really hard for a small amount of flickering on the darker coloured gorillas you will find it - the thing is though, the quality of transfer is very good, well saturated colours, good sound, great sharpness, so I have a feeling that the "flicker" might well be in the technology used to "paint" in the first place rather than the transfer. That said you will have to look real hard for it and examine the film rather than watch it to even spot it! So if you are a fan of this film, Disney or animation in general, I'd reccomend it, and would not be put off by some other reviews! That said we all have our own opinions and standards!! Enjoy!

Well I did just write a review, but it disappeared. So instead of a review with depth and reason I will say this;
This movie is great Disney Animated Classic. If you love Disney movies, you'll love this one. A non princess Disney movie that is fun yet still has a few issues. If you love Disney, but haven't seen this movie, buy it. If you have seen this movie and haven't bought it yet, why haven't you bought it?

This is a must have DVD.With loads of extras! I still havent finished looking at all of them yet! The picture and sound quality are excellent and i recommend spending a little more and gettign the collectors edition!

Being somebody who buys all the Disney releases as and when they come out, it was a foregone conclusion that I would get this one too. It has to be one of the greatest ever made. The extra disc, although informative, did not give much away and could perhaps have done more. One of the best things about this movie has to be the music. Phil Collins really exceeded himself on this one with superb lyrics and excellent jungle-like rythmns, the best example of which has to be "Trashin the camp".

All in all a good buy, well worth it.