Tarzan and the Slave Girl (1950)

Lex Barker dons the Tarzan trunks for the second time in what is a fun Tarzan adventure, even if it's just a bit too crammed with intentions for its own good. Vanessa Brown slips into Jane's short jungle skirt and Denise Darcel is also on hand to provide some extra sex pheromones; and to indulge in a girl on girl scrap with Jane! Cool!Plot is basically Tarzan out to rescue a bunch of femme natives from the clutches of some mad culty tribesmen led by Hurd Hatfield. There's a jungle disease issue to take care of as well, Cheetah's (owning the movie unsurprisingly) alcohol problem, and of course there's some baddies to be dispensed with which allows Barker to use his athleticism to great effect.Tarzan gets to be vocal, well more a case of muffled utterances really, and Lee Sholem directs it with economical assuredness. Come the end, baddies vanquished, Jane and Cheetah are smiling, and this Greystoke bloke is a hero again. Hooray! Good solid wholesome Tarzan froth. 6/10

Lord of the jungle Lex Barker (as Tarzan) and leggy mate Vanessa Brown (as Jane) are riding the elephant when they happen upon a damsel in distress. As it turns out, she's been kidnapped by a tribe of "Lionians" who like to make slaves of attractive women. When a mysterious disease threatens everyone in the area, Mr. Barker brings doctor Arthur Shields (as E.E. Campbell) into the picture. Tagging along are his full-figured blonde nurse Denise Darcel (as Lola) and her boozy boyfriend Robert Alda (as Neil). The former does everything she can to get into Barker's loincloth, and the latter provides Cheeta with another drunk scene...Eventually, Ms. Brown and Ms. Darcel are abducted into the slave harem, which is run by handsome Hurd Hatfield, the Prince of the Lionians. Again, Darcel indicates her readiness for a good-looking male. Former silent screen star Robert Warwick is the tribe's high priest. But the lead villain is Anthony "Tony" Caruso (as Sengo), who keeps stroking his scar and dreaming of Brown. Fortunately for romantics, Barker and Brown remain true to each other. This was Brown's only appearance as "Jane" in the series, with rotating mates becoming the norm. She, Darcel, and the scantily-clad harem girls provide a lot fodder for sexual fantasy.***** Tarzan and the Slave Girl (6/21/50) Lee Sholem ~ Lex Barker, Vanessa Brown, Denise Darcel, Anthony Caruso

This film offers some special treats: poison darts, a mysterious tribe of camouflaged warriors known as the Whati, Denise Darcel as Lola the Nurse, a man-eating lion pit, Vanessa Brown and a slave girl dog pile on one of the fat guards. The darts are particularly pungent and drop victims in their tracks. The Whati are foreboding and could have been used more throughout the film. The lion pit shows a continuity problem where one of Tarzan's adversaries is thrown in to be devoured only to reappear thirty seconds later to get thrown in a second time with same result. Vanessa Brown is fun to watch and feels "girl next door". She leaves the tree house in pursuit of rogue warriors with her bow and arrow - would have been great for her to show archery skills and get one of the bad guys - if this film were made today would surely have given Jane an opportunity to shine this way with an arrow to one or two of the kidnappers thorax or esophagus. Denise Darcel exudes sexuality and you can see her longing to have her way with Tarzan. She surely must have been the inspiration for Charro's hoochie coochie bumps and grinds made famous 15 years later on 60's TV variety shows. The dog pile scene occurs when Tarzan breaks into the palace and the slave girls on cue immobilize one of the lucky(er...)unlucky accomplices and block the door momentarily long enough for Tarzan to get away. Lex Barker looks particularly fit doing most of his fight and climbing scenes(Jock Mahoney doing tough stunts?). Anthony Caruso is the heavy and does his usual great work. Robert Alda, Alan's dad, is also on hand to lend credibility to the story. Chimp antics in this film are not as good as those in Magic Fountain but are still timeless fun for the kid in all of us.

Watching this Tarzan movie can be a multi-cultural experience. Tarzan and Jane are of English extraction living in Africa, which as usual looks more like a South American rain forest. One of the native tribes here is black, but others look more like South Pacific islanders, or just bronzed Caucasians. There's an Irish doctor who is assisted by a feisty Latin nurse. The tribe that's capturing slaves has a culture that looks vaguely Egyptian, but they're building a temple that is more Mayan with the help of Indian elephants, which respond to Tarzan's famous yell just like the African ones. Finally, the captured slave girls resemble Veronica Lake or Linda Darnell and dress like Dorothy Lamour.Of course, everyone knows what they're getting with a Tarzan movie, which are not examples of cultural, geographical or political correctness. Lex Barker in the title role is almost interchangeable with Johnny Weissmuller. Vanessa Brown, in her only appearance as Jane, is lovely but might seem a bit too young and dainty for some tastes, though she does handle herself pretty well in a fight with Lola the nurse. If you're ever overcome with a wave of nostalgia you may want to watch this.