Before
he was in the immortal Blood Freak, Steve Hawkes starred in this cheap Tarzan
rip-off as Zan. Because of his muscular
build, Hawkes seems more like Hercules than Tarzan. Sure, he makes a Tarzan-esque yell, rides on
an elephant, swings from a vine, and has a talking parrot for a pet, but he
also hurls boulders, lifts heavy gates, and spends a lot of his screen time
sleeping; just like Hercules. That’s not
really a criticism; merely an observation.
After
Zan saves a beautiful Amazon woman from being sacrificed by a native tribe, he is
shot by a poacher. A drunk prospector
nurses him back to health and Zan repays his kindness by giving him gold from a
nearby grotto. When the hunters learn
he’s got gold, they kill the prospector and steal his loot. Zan then sets out to stop the murderers and
protect the prospector’s sexy daughter.
Directed
by Manuel (The Swamp of the Ravens) Cano and co-written by Umberto (Cannibal
Ferox) Lenzi, Zan King of the Jungle is a ho-hum Tarzan knockoff in just about
every respect. One major stumbling block
is the fact that Zan kind of gets lost in his own movie. There are just way too many supporting
characters competing for screen time for Hawkes to really make an
impression. In addition to the drunken
prospector, there’s a guide (who’s also a drunk) that takes on most of the
romantic lead-type of duties. Even
though the heroine is hot, Hawkes seems more interested in the Amazon queen,
even though their relationship is extremely platonic. If they were trying to really capture the
flavor of the old Tarzan movies, they should’ve given him a more traditional
Jane type of leading lady to play against.
There
is at least one memorably nutty scene worth mentioning. It comes when Zan swims into the underwater
grotto to find the gold and participates in a no holds barred cage match with a
gorilla (or more precisely, a guy in a gorilla suit). This scene is a lot of fun and is easily the
best part of an otherwise forgettable jungle picture.
Cano
and Hawkes later reteamed for a sequel, Tarzan and the Brown Prince.
AKA: Tarzan in the Golden Grotto. AKA:
King of the Jungle.
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