MOVIES · STORY NOTES

Tarzan

Tarzan is a 1999 American animated adventure film based on the 1912 story Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs. The film follows an orphan who is raised by a family of gorillas in Africa after his biological parents are killed by a leopard.

Description adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Tarzan (1999 film) · CC BY-SA 4.0. Text adapted for this entry.

FULL SPOILERS AHEAD

The story, including the ending.

These write-ups discuss major events and outcomes for this listed work. Each source and its coverage are identified below.

Source plot synopsis — includes the ending

In the 1890s, a British couple and their infant son are shipwrecked on the coast of equatorial West Africa. After building a treehouse with parts salvaged from the wreckage, the couple are soon killed by Sabor, a leopard. Kala, a gorilla who lost her own infant to Sabor, discovers the orphaned infant in the treehouse. She rescues him from Sabor and adopts him, naming him Tarzan.
As a child, Tarzan lives in the jungle with Kala, befriending her niece Terk, and the paranoid elephant Tantor. Tarzan finds himself treated differently by the gorillas, including Kerchak, the troop's stern leader and Kala's mate. When Tarzan accepts a dare from Terk, he accidentally triggers an elephant stampede. Infuriated, Kerchak declares Tarzan an outsider. With the support from Kala, Terk and Tantor, Tarzan makes valiant efforts to improve himself as he grows. Years later, Tarzan protects Kerchak against Sabor's ambush and kills her, earning his reluctant respect.
Meanwhile, British explorer Archimedes Q. Porter, his daughter Jane, and their hunter escort Clayton arrive in Africa to study gorillas. Jane gets distracted by a baby baboon, and is chased by an entire troop, until a curious Tarzan rescues her. Comparing himself to Jane, Tarzan discovers that they are from the same species. He returns Jane to her camp, where Porter and Clayton both take an interest in him. Despite Kerchak's orders to stay away from the humans, Tarzan repeatedly visits the camp to know more about the human world, and falls in love with Jane. But fearing Kerchak's fury, Tarzan refuses to take the trio to the gorillas.
The explorers' ship arrives to retrieve them. Jane persuades Tarzan to return to England with her, explaining he belongs to civilization, and not the jungle. After Jane tearfully rejects Tarzan's pleas, Clayton convinces him to lead the trio to the gorillas, saying that Jane will stay if she sees the gorillas. Having fallen for Jane, Tarzan gets Terk and Tantor to distract Kerchak, allowing Tarzan to guide the trio to the nesting grounds. Discovering the gorillas, the Porters excitedly mingle with them. Kerchak returns unexpectedly and attacks the humans upon seeing Clayton threatening a gorilla. The trio escapes as Tarzan restrains Kerchak who deeply reproaches Tarzan afterwards for betraying the troop. After Tarzan flees in guilt, Kala comforts him and takes him to the treehouse to reveal his heritage. As Kala will support whatever decision he makes, Tarzan decides to return to England and bids Kala a fond farewell.
Upon boarding the ship, Tarzan and the Porters are ambushed by a group of stowaway poachers. Clayton shows himself and with knowledge of the gorillas' territory, explains to Tarzan his plan to capture and sell all the gorillas for profit before imprisoning him and the Porters in the hold to prevent their interference. Hearing Tarzan's distant anguished yell, Terk and Tantor storm the ship and free the captives, allowing Tarzan to race back to land.
As Clayton and his henchmen begin capturing the gorillas, Tarzan, his friends, and the rallied animals intervene to scare away the henchmen and free the gorillas, including a caged Kala. Clayton mortally shoots Kerchak, and personally battles Tarzan through the rainforest canopy. While pursuing Tarzan across the dense vines with his machete, Clayton becomes entangled and desperately cuts through them, before accidentally hanging himself. Tarzan returns to the dying Kerchak who finally accepts Tarzan as his son, and names him the new gorilla troop's leader.
The next day, as the Porters leave on the ship's rowboat while Tarzan stays behind with the gorillas, Porter encourages Jane to stay with the man she loves. Jane jumps overboard, followed by her father and reunite with Tarzan and his family, solidifying their new life in the jungle.
Sources and content license

Source and revision history ↗ · Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Tarzan (1999 film). Section headings and formatting adjusted. · Content license