5 comments

  • It’s interesting that the part we get on the set makes it very clear that this is Skarsgard’s body and mentions his training regime. There have been some comments from those viewing the trailer that his body was photoshopped. I guess there are some pretty ignorant people out there who don’t realize that all of the great looking male bodies out there with well defined abs and bulging pecs and arm muscles are the result of intense workout regimes and very specific diets. To keep the look during filming the actors keep weights on set so they can pump up their muscels just before a scene that shows them off. Also, they have to eat very small portions of food about every 3 hours so their stomachs don’t bulge but yet they their energy levels remain constant. They must think these muscle men are just naturally that way with just a little gym workout daily. I wondered if the marketing people are aware of this level of ignorance and so included that on set scene to address this issue.I am hoping they did because it would show an awareness of public reactions that they will need if they are to sell this film.

    I have read 5-6 of the professional reviews of the trailer and most are cautiously optimistic. It is the comment section that runs from positive to luke warm to openly negative. I know there are always the initial sour grapes from people who can’t wait to trash a movie but these are usually drowned out if an enthusiastic tone is set followed by a majority of commenters who are excited to see a movie, The reviewers need to become overtly enthusiastic as more trailers come out and we get closer to the release date. That will build a momentum of positive comments which in turn will beget even more enthusiasm. This will happen if the trailers are increasingly awesome and include some character interactions that pull viewers in and make them want to see what happens.Right now, we have just an inkling and it looks good so I am hopeful that more will come and it will spark even more interest and enthusiasm.

    There are too many references to the earlier Hollywood Reporter article about trouble for Tarzan because Yates has turned his attention to Fantastic Beasts. One even called it ” possible hot mess”. I would be very happy if they got off of this reference entirely Since it’s not grounded in anything but idle speculation. WB and Yates planned for this split and left plenty of time to complete both movies on schedule. Perhaps the need for trumped up drama will recede tonce the PR goes into full swing with more trailers,interviews,guest appearances on TV talk shows etc. Hopefully WB will not change the release date. If that do,it will only stir up a hornets nest of negative speculation. If they don’t,it will give the lie to these rumors and put them to rest permanently.

  • The reaction on Reddit and YouTube seems to be mostly really positive with a few negative ones (but they’re being downvoted). I haven’t checked out Facebook but the professional websites like Cinema Blend and Collider etc. seem to all be cautiously optimistic to really positive. The only place I’ve seen nothing but negativity is Deadline, especially in the comments section.

    And yeah, I’m seeing way too many people reference that THR article for my liking. I’m trying to post around here and there telling them that article is mostly not reliable.

    • Yes,I have been doing the same,trying to post comments where possible about the unfounded speculations made by THR. The most recent comments on IMBD are more positive and enthusiastic after the trailer came outln

  • I’ve been relatively negative. It’s not that “I can’t wait to trash a movie” (in fact, I watch films with two eyes – one looks for pure entertainment, the other critiques. When a film is “good”, after you’ve said “it was good/great/really loved it etc”, there’s nothing else to talk about except those things that kept it from being “perfect” (I really loved it but…the music wasn’t quite right here and there; there were some continuity issues…that plot hole…the cgi in places…that actor’s performance…).

    On the other hand: when you have as much experience with film as someone who has a keen interest in film (particularly of the genre variety) and has been watching them for more than half a century, it’s not at all difficult to make what appears to others to be a snap judgement based on thin evidence. But its not based on thin evidence: it’s usually based on an intimate familiarity with the source material, earlier film renditions of the property and a jaundiced reception of the “modern” film promotion machine.

    If one digs a bit deeper into the background and prior work of the creative crew involved (if not already familiar) – director, writers, sometimes the actors – it becomes even easier to make that judgement without having to resort to seeing the entire film.

    A perfect example is to be found in John Carter. The moment that one learns that the director had: A. never directed live action before and B. based his knowledge of the source material on 70s Marvel comics, one is entirely justified in being skeptical of the result. Bolster that with knowledge of the acting crew (no sterling Shakesperians among them) and early looks at the visual “interpretation” of the source material, and it was quite easy to pronounce that the film would be a flop – at least as I was personally concerned – quite early on in the process. That that view was totally justified by the resultant box office returns is evidence that it is quite possible to make these judgments without seeing the full product.

    I’m now in the “skeptical” phase of my assessment of Tarzan: I think it (from the evidence in hand) very unlikely that the film will manage to bridge the public’s perceived knowledge of the character and bridge to the modernized version, and will have difficulty getting past the “we’ve seen this all before elsewhere and it was better” phenom (most think that Flash Gordon is a bad interpretation of Star Wars). And I think its biggest hurdle will be in modernizing the jungle tale – a sub-genre that has accumulated a ton of dust ever since we stopped using the phrase “deepest, darkest Africa”.

    • Yes, I think that’s it’s biggest hurdle as well and if they don’t market the hell out of it targeting this particular hurdle with the goal of overcoming it then it won’t be successful. It has been an issue on this board that we have discussed since the beginning. You are on point with this concern. The first trailerpromoted the action and adventure aspects of the film but from earlier comments made by a poster on IMDB who saw the screening last spring ,it is not a non stop action film and has a reasonable amount of periods in between the action that deal with character interactions and developement. I am hoping the next series of trailers include more of Tarzan as Lord Greystoke ( making it clear that this is definitely not an origin story) his relationship with Jane and Williams in England and scenes in the Congo that deal with his relationship with the Magani,Captain Rom and Chief MBonga.

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