Tarzan
Buena Vista Pictures | Release Date: June 18, 1999 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
80
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 27 Critic Reviews
Positive:
22
Mixed:
5
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
The stylized physiques and movements of the characters in this exciting animated musical-romance-adventure are at once realist and fantastic. Read full review
100
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
I saw Tarzan once, and went to see it again. This kind of bright, colorful, hyperkinetic animation is a visual exhilaration. Read full review
100
San Francisco ChroniclePeter Stack
An inspired mix of spirited family entertainment and harrowing drama. Read full review
100
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
This is entertainment worth thumping your chest over. [18 June 1999, Life, p.2E]
91
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
It's a buoyant, often thrilling piece of animation that more or less does for the Central African rain forest what "The Lion King" did for the East African savanna. Read full review
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
One of the great virtues of Disney's most elegant animated ''classic'' in years is how blessedly sermon-free this zippy, dignified retelling of Edgar Rice Burroughs' ripping 1914 yarn is. Read full review
90
L.A. WeeklyF. X. Feeney
Of the many excellent animated features Disney has produced over the past decade, this is the one that feels the freest, and sweetest. Read full review
90
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
We may have seen it all before, but when it's done up like this, experiencing it all over again is a pleasure. [16 June 1999, Calendar, p.F-1]
90
Washington PostStephen Hunter
This Tarzan doesn't bellow, he kvetches; he doesn't dominate, he persuades; he doesn't rule, he seeks consensus. He isn't the king of the apes, he's a citizen of the animal planet. Read full review
90
The New YorkerDavid Denby
At its best, the movie is an exhilarating, surf-topping ride. With Minnie Driver providing the voice of a deliciously flirtatious Jane. Read full review
90
NewsweekDavid Ansen
It's a swirling, fluid retelling of the tale that packs an impressive cargo of laughs, thrills and wonders into a watertight 88 minutes. Read full review
90
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
It proves to be one of the more exotic blooms in the Disney hothouse, what with voluptuous flora, hordes of fauna, charming characters and excitingly kinetic animation that gracefully incorporates computer-generated motion. Read full review
90
Dallas ObserverM. V. Moorhead
A fine entertainment value. It's beautifully made, drenched in deep, rich emerald, with sinuous tracking visuals driven forward by pleasantly African-flavored songs from Phil Collins. Read full review
89
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Although the villainous parts of this Tarzan are a bit hazy and the animal attraction between Tarzan and Jane a bit chaste, the film, nevertheless, works both for children and the adults. Read full review
80
Film ThreatChris Gore
Tarzan is a blast for both kids and grownups like myself and gets my recommendation. Read full review
80
VarietyTodd McCarthy
Swings, even if it doesn't always soar. Read full review
80
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Speaking of Jane, Minnie Driver gets the big banana for top off-screen performance. She brims over with prissiness and pep, tenderness and visionary appreciation. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Propelled by Mark Mancina's percussive score, this Tarzan swings. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
There's no over-the-top music or comedy sequence to place this with the very best Disney animations, though, and Phil Collins's songs won't be to everyone's taste. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
From a purely visual standpoint, this may be the most impressive of all of Disney's traditionally animated features. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
As a ride, this Tarzan succeeds. As a pop myth, it needs more jungle fever. [18 June 1999, Friday, p.A]
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
Too busy to be boring or deeply engaging, Tarzan is an efficient Disney treatment of a time-tested story. The results aren't bad, just not quite worth a chest-pounding victory yell. Read full review
60
SlateDavid Edelstein
The movie is a collision between inspiration and tastelessness, between the defiantly quirky and the wholesomely homogenized. I hated it in principle--I hate most modern Disney cartoons--but adored a good deal of it in practice. Read full review
60
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
The main problem with Tarzan is its story, which, after a strong start, finds a steady groove and stays with it, offering no particular highs or lows. Read full review
50
New York Magazine (Vulture)Peter Rainer
Some first-rate animation and some second-rate storytelling. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
The result is a confused mess of mixed signals that substitutes a brutal climax for any kind of satisfactory resolution. Parents should be warned about the frequent gunfire and a grisly death by hanging. Read full review
50
Village VoiceRichard Gehr
Visually rich yet numbingly formulaic. Read full review
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