Despite the wealth of knowledge delivered by its interviewees, the documentary I, Tarzan presents a confusing mix of fact and fiction while exploring the history of Edgar Rice Burrough’s famous character, Tarzan. Librarians and academics looking to educate audiences about Tarzan’s cultural legacy might find themselves with perplexed viewers on their hands after screening Francois Christophe’s I, Tarzan.
The film’s wraparound segment takes place in the supposed castle of Lord Greystoke—“better known as Tarzan.” In the castle’s halls, a security guard leads the viewer to the rooms of different Tarzan experts (or “keepers of the cult”), while also providing voiceover narration.
We first encounter George McWorter, who collects all things pop culture about Tarzan: comics, cinema, literature… It’s quite impressive and curious minds might like to ask questions about this unique collector and his affinity for Tarzan. Instead he recounts for the camera Tarzan’s timeline as a pop culture icon and excitedly retells tales from the Tarzan franchise.
Burroughs began writing about Tarzan in 1911 and published the first book (Tarzan of the Apes) in 1912. Rudyard Kipling’s maybe-too-similar Jungle Book was published 16 years earlier, though, Burroughs always claimed the myth of Romulus and Remus as inspiration for the character. Tarzan was quickly introduced to cinema audiences of the silent era in 1918—this adaptation was one of the first films to gross over a million dollars at the box office - and to the world of comics in 1929.
Interviewee Francis Lacassin, a European pop culture expert, tackles the subject of Tarzan from a more literary standpoint, discussing themes like sexuality and race. He addresses the purity of Tarzan – “he’s a homeless being living on air” - which has led some critics to think him to have sexual hang-ups. (It doesn’t help that most of the franchise’s female antagonists are depicted as “man-eaters.”) He also addresses the inherent racism of Tarzan’s story, as a white man serving as the king of the African jungle, though Lacassin (perhaps missing the point of these concerns) points out that the villains of the novels tend to be German or Russian.
The third and final “keeper of the cult,” Philip José Farmer, author of the fictional biography Tarzan Alive: A Definitive Biography of Lord Greystoke, attempts to tell the “true story” of Tarzan. He makes some very outrageous claims, including that he called up the “real Tarzan” and met with him for 15 minutes, though Farmer has no proof of this. It’s unclear if he’s playing a sarcastic joke on the audience, telling stories about meteorites mutilating women to be “extraordinary” and the “real” Tarzan covering up the existence of an ancient city. Farmer’s level of trustworthiness is similar to that of the interviewees of a Rodney Ascher doc.
Farmer’s unbelievable account is interwoven with the novels’ equally fantastic version of events, as told by an animated George McWorter. The narrator from the wraparound also inserts himself into these murky stories, claiming to have been born the same night, in a village near Tarzan. He also claims to be one hundred years old. This clearly false story-within-a-documentary adds a layer to Tarzan’s mythology - a layer that only distracts from any substance I, Tarzan offers.
Unfortunately, the more creative aspects of I, Tarzan, like the “true” stories from Farmer and the wraparound segment’s mysterious narrator, force viewers to sift through fanciful storytelling and reality and literary criticism to make sense of what could be an otherwise interesting cultural history. Low production quality (the opening titles look like something out of Windows Movie Maker) and a lack of a throughline feels cheap and confusing, muddying what could be a straightforward documentary about Tarzan’s enduring impact. Media librarians might be able to incorporate I, Tarzan into a series of Tarzan film adaptations or a book club for one of Burroughs’ novels, but viewers might leave more confused than before they saw the documentary.
What kind of film series would I, Tarzan fit in?
I, Tarzan could fit into a series of Tarzan film adaptations (such as the pre-code Tarzan and His Mate, the animated Disney movie, and the most recent Alexander Skarsgård vehicle), perhaps as an introduction.
What academic library shelves would I, Tarzan be on?
I, Tarzan could probably be found on an academic library’s shelves if they have a section for docufiction.
Can this film be used in a library education program?
I, Tarzan could potentially be used in a library education program about modern mythology, Edgar Rice Burroughs, or the impact of pop culture icons in the 20th century.