This is one of the very best of the Tarzan entries. MGM built an entire river and jungle covering eighty acres for this one and the underwater sequences shot in Florida are some of the best in this very popular series starring athletic Johnny Weissmuller as Edgar Rice Burroughs’ jungle hero, and pretty Maureen O’Sullivan as his mate, Jane.

Everything about this one is top-notch. Cedric Gibbons was in charge of art direction and the screenplay from Myles Connolly and Paul Gangelin is excellent, offering plenty of drama and humor, and a bit of jungle romance. A superb cast of screen veterans, including Tom Conway (The Falcon), Reginald Owen, Philip Dorn, and Barry Fitzgerald, add excitement and adventure to the very successful Tarzan franchise.

Boy (Johnny Sheffield) discovers gold while on a morning swim with Tarzan and Jane. Intrigued by Jane’s descriptions of all he could buy with it in civilization, he sneaks out that night to get a peek at it. He befriends a young native boy (Cordell Hickman) from a dangerous tribe and must be saved from them by first an expedition seeking a more obscure tribe, then Tarzan who must come to their aid.

But whenever gold is around, so is greed, which sets in for two members of the expedition — Medford (Tom Conway), and Vandemeer (Philip Dorn). Professor Elliot (Reginald Owen), the expedition leader, respects Tarzan’s wish to forget about the gold, but when the plague strikes both he and Boy, Medford and Vandemeer aren’t above using leverage to get their way, and their chance at that gold.

A dangerous exit from the jungle by river, a tribe so dangerous their drums strike fear in other tribes, lead to an action-filled finale. Tarzan can’t do it alone, of course, but remember, he has many jungle friends. While Tarzan’s Secret Treasure begins in an easygoing manner, there is lots of fun and drama in one of the most atmospheric entries in this fine series. A romantic moonlight swim offers some nice moments between Weissmuller and O’Sullivan in this entry. An excellent adventure film on its own, and a very special installment in one of the most popular series in film history. ( )