Tarzan (1999)

The opening eight minutes of Disney's Tarzan are fantastic - it's pure drama, dialogue-free, a perfect example of how animation alone can be used to tell a gripping story. The protagonists are sympathetic and the four-legged villain is terrifying. But then the animals talk... in English... with US accents and it takes an elephant-sized dive directly into Cocked-it-up Swamp.
The humans fare better in that respect, particularly Minnie Driver as Jane Porter, and Brian Blessed as William Clayton the shotgun-loving hunter.
When the talking animals are absent the whole thing recovers part of its opening appeal, with occasional musings on the importance of family and understanding the emotional needs of others being precise and timely.

3 vine climbs out of 5