The Second World War served as a very effective source of plot for Tarzan Triumphs!, a 1943 film and the seventh instalment of the Tarzan series starring Johnny Weissmuller. The still-ongoing conflict was exploited again a few months later in its sequel, Tarzan’s Desert Mystery, directed by William Thiele.
The plot begins with Tarzan (played by Weissmuller) and his adopted son, Boy (played by Johnny Sheffield), receiving another letter from Jane, who is currently in London. She explains that she is volunteering as a nurse and asks Tarzan to provide “jungle medicine” needed for the treatment of wounded Allied servicemen. Tarzan, who very reluctantly takes Boy and the chimpanzee Cheeta with him, can get it only if he passes through a stretch of desert. There he stumbles upon Karl Straeder (played by Joe Lewis), a man who tries to capture a wild stallion in order to impress Sheikh Abdul El Khim (played by Lloyd Corrigan), ruler of a small desert kingdom. Straeder works for Paul Hendrix (played by Otto Kruger), a businessman who is actually a German agent. Connie Bryce (played by Nancy Kelly) is a travelling vaudeville performer who entertained Allied servicemen in North Africa and now volunteers to deliver a secret message to the Sheikh’s son, Prince Salim (played by Robert Lowery). She meets Tarzan, who brings her to the city, where Tarzan gets imprisoned and, later, Connie gets framed for Salim’s murder. Boy and Cheeta must find ways to rescue them both.
Tarzan’s Desert Mystery was the second Tarzan film made by RKO Pictures. Producer Sol Lesser tried very hard to make them as different from the Tarzan films made by MGM as possible. In this particular case, it was achieved by getting Tarzan and his companions out of the jungle and into the desert. The change of scenery was refreshing, despite the desert and small Arab town not being the most suitable place for the jungle king to show his superb physical, combat and survival skills. William Thiele nevertheless directs the film well and keeps the tempo quick, making Tarzan’s Desert Mystery very short. Nancy Kelly is surprisingly effective in the lead female role, playing a character who serves as a temporary surrogate mother for Boy while being a tough-talking and resourceful entertainer. She even provides the film with a short but charming musical number during which she performs “Boola Boola”, the unofficial anthem of Yale University. Nancy Kelly thus easily outshines Weissmuller and the rest of the cast.
Desert Mystery works very well, but it turns significantly worse near the end when Tarzan has to get into another, “more dangerous” jungle, where he has to deal with huge carnivorous plants, a gigantic spider and large prehistoric reptiles (recreated via stock footage from the 1940 film One Million B.C.). This segment seems alien and unconvincing and looks like a last-minute attempt to fill the film with “exotic” content. Despite that, Tarzan’s Desert Mystery still functions as solid, family-friendly entertainment, although it is significantly worse in comparison with earlier instalments of the series.
RATING: 5/10 (++)
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