The king of the jungle returns! Sony Pictures has successfully secured the film rights to Tarzan of the organization of the legitimate creator of the franchise, Edgar Rice Burroughs Inc. However, given the complicated nature of the film industry, there has obviously been a predicament associated with Sony taking control of the film, and this n is not one that will go unnoticed.
The one announcement the entertainment company made about the movie doesn’t seem to sit well with the general public. Filming hasn’t even started yet, and the prospect of this film is already upsetting people.
Sony plans to reinvent Tarzan to fit the 21st century
Apparently Sony’s plans to make this movie involve a “total reinvention” of the character of Tarzan so that he can adapt to the 21st century.
However, with no writers, producers, or filmmakers known to be associated with the film, no one knows exactly how Sony will create an all-new film with a completely different portrayal of Tarzan.
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But even the mere idea doesn’t impress fans, so it’s going to be a bit of a gamble when the actual result comes out.
The Story Behind Everyone’s Favorite Childhood Character
Growing up, the fictional character of Burroughs had been considered a great figure by countless children. It didn’t take long for the story to become one of the most popular cult classics.
Although the character was first created in 1912, various adaptations of the story in the form of shows, cartoons, and movies have surfaced since then. Even so, the baseline has somehow always remained the same – an orphan boy who is raised by a group of monkeys in the vast jungle, who gradually transforms into one of the strongest entities there and discovers who he actually is at a later stage.
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This story, although it seems quite simple, is actually inherently tainted with racism.
Starting with the name itself, Tarzan, which means “white skin,” there are a lot of such issues with not just the early stories and books, but the later ones as well. One such problem that is commonly found is the stereotypical portrayal of indigenous Africans, who come across as “wicked and evil” villagers.
Tarzan being white and emerging superior to all before him, doesn’t help to tone down the racial undertones of the story either. Instead, it ends up turning into a tale as old as time in which the white male is the symbol of power because he’s the only one who can rush in and save the day. Neither the monkeys who raised him nor the other humans are strong enough.
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Why does the prospect of a “new” Tarzan upset people?
The latest adaptation of Tarzan was released as a live-action drama, named The Legend of Tarzancourtesy of Warner Bros. It starred Alexander Skarsgard as Tarzan and Margot Robbie as Jane, the Englishwoman whom Tarzan later falls in love with.
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This 2016 film was also more or less an attempt to revitalize Tarzan in a new guise as a character with different ideals and viewpoints. But it seems quite difficult to separate the character from his origin story and the values that were instilled in him.
The same goes for Sony’s announcement about reinventing Tarzan, because it really means bringing to life a strange amalgamation of woke culture and racism. And of course, no one is dying to see this. But only time will tell if anything good will come of it or not.
No further details about the film have yet been shared.
Source: Twitter