Tarzan nella valle dell'oro

Ex-L.A. Rams linebacker Mike Henry makes his debut as Tarzan in this 1960s adventure. His arrival in Mexico wearing a suit and tie and carrying a briefcase is quite jarring, as is his subsequent "James Bond style" gunfight. But, not to fear, this is just to show us that this Tarzan is handy with modern weapons and is at ease in any environment. He does go into the jungle(in his loincloth)accompanied by a couple of wild animals and this is where the film gets interesting. He has to find the legendary Valley of Gold and protect its citizens from greedy villain Vinaro(David Opatashu) and his well organized(not to mention armed-to-the-teeth) army. The story is a little hokey at times, and seeing Tarzan use guns, grenades and a tank is a little hard to take, but overall the characterizations are good and the Mexican scenery is nothing short of spectacular(especially the Aztec pyramid city).Opetashu is perfect as the smooth, slick villain who sends his enemies exploding wristwatches. Henry is a little serious as Tarzan but he does excel in the action sequences. On the whole a groovy movie experience( jazzy musical score and all).

It's a long time since I saw this and spent a fun afternoon watching it on the small screen; all I really remember is that the chimp usually known as "Cheetah" was called "Dinky" in this one. And that Mike Henry! What a versatile actor!

Other than the hip musical score which seemed out of place for another Tarzan adventure flick even for 1966, Mike Henry did more than an admirable job in playing a modern day Tarzan who gets attacked by planes, helicopters and even army tanks! After retiring from a successful career in the National Football League (NFL) as a buff and bruising linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers (1959-1961) and then the Los Angeles Rams (1962-1964), Mike Henry thought it would be an easier gig playing the tree swinging Tarzan in a trio of films starting with the 1966 film Tarzan and the Valley Of Gold. But boy oh boy was he wrong.

Although the film was made under the hot sun of Mexico, he appeared to be running through the dense jungles of Africa. Mike Henry as Tarzan also showed no fear when he opened the cage of a fierce leopard and he put a chain around the leopard's neck before releasing him in an effort to hunt down his little friend Ramel (Manuel Padilla Jr.) who was captured to lead the greedy villain named Augustus Vinero (David Opatoshu) into the valley of gold.

Tarzan is going to face the villain Augustus Vinero and his army of planes, helicopters and army tanks with his three (3) animal friends, a monkey, a leopard and a lion. You can visibly see the sculptured thirty (30) year old body of retired professional athlete and now film star is in great shape, but what the silver screen does not tell you how hard Mike Henry worked whislt filming in Mexico. After his third feature Tarzan film, Mike Henry sued film produce Sy Weintraub after suffering animal bites, food poisoning, infections, and severe working conditions in both Mexico and Brazil. During his short tenure as Tarzan, Mike was bitten in the face by a chimp and had to have his chin sewn up with twenty stitches. In addition he suffered from dysentery, an ear infection, and a liver ailment. Just watching Tarzan (Mike Henry) running in just his bare feet and a thong suit through those woods had me shouting "ouch"...'"ouch" ... and "ouch" again.

This is in my humble opinion a better than average Tarzan film and Mike Henry's physique is more fit than the best known film Tarzan former Olympic swimmer Johnny Weissmuller's physique. Tarzan and the Valley of Gold also has its own "Jane" in the lovely actress Nancy Kovack who plays the lady in distress in the jungle Sophia Renault.

I give it an exceptional 7 out of 10 IMDB rating.

Perhaps the makers of this film thought it was time to update Tarzan and cash in on the secret agent craze that swept movies and television in the 60's. In this picture Tarzan played by Mike Henry is first seen stepping out of a helicopter in a suit and tie carrying a briefcase. Later he engages in a gun battle ala James Bond.

Eventually he ends up back in the jungle sheds his coat and tie along with his pistol for his loin cloth and knife and takes on the bad guys who are equipped with machine guns, tanks and hi-tech explosives. Actually this Tarzan film although not one of the best is a great deal more entertaining than the 1981 Tarzan The Ape Man with Bo Derek. Along as his sidekicks are Manuel Padilla Jr who takes on the "BOY" role with the name of Remel and Nancy Kovacks who becomes sort of his Jane decked out in sexy female jungle safari clothes. His chimpanzee buddy goes by the name "Dinky". If your a Tarzan fan this film should be included in your viewing keeping in mind that the Tarzan character like Superman has been able to adjust to change through out the decades.

this movie is fine!it is filmed in mexico,which makes it special!mike henry is the best tarzan actor of them all!he is very sexy running in his loincloth barefooted!his well buit body is fine!!he puts a full nelson on the bad guy,he never stops,untill he snaps his neck. at the end the gold is safe!this movie is a perfect 10!