THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
After the colossal success of The Lion King, Walt Disney was not so hesitant with the next stories that would come after. Another bold film from the animated studio arrived only a year after the ‘94 classic. And while there is a crowd that has reasonable dislike with this one, I am in the crowd that enjoys each viewing.
PLOT
Inspired by actual events, Pocahontas takes place in 1607 and shows the collision of two worlds. Governor Ratcliffe assembles a ship of British settlers to search for gold in North America. They find a forest where a native tribe resides. Pocahontas (Irene Bedard), daughter of Chief Powhatan (Russell Means), is uncomfortable of being arranged to marry the warrior Kocoum (James Apaumut Fall), due to how he is not much of a social person or as she describes him 'too serious'. She shares this with Grandmother Willow, a spirit tree, along with the fact that she's been dreaming of a spinning arrow. The only advice she gives is for her to listen to her heart. Upon the arrival of the British, Ratcliffe quickly orders his crew to dig for possible gold. As that happens, his captain John Smith (Mel Gibson) explores the territory. He does encounter Pocahontas' pet raccoon Meeko before meeting the titular woman herself. During their first encounter, she helps him understand that her people are not savage like compared to other natives he's ever encountered. When she tells her father of her encounter later on that day, he sends scouts to learn more of them up close. When Ratcliffe spots them, he fearfully assumes it's an ambush and fires at him. Due to one of the scouts being injured from a bullet wound, Chief Powhatan declares war on the settlers, calling other tribes to aid him in a possible battle against the new enemy. Days later, Smith sees Pocahontas and explains that he came looking for gold, but she reveals that there isn't any. He does share this with Ratcliffe but he doesn't believe him, thinking that the natives are keeping it for themselves. He does see Pocahontas again when ordered not to and this time, he meets Grandmother Willow and convinces the two to talk to Powhatan and resolve the conflict. They confess their newfound love to each other as they share a kiss. Kocoum, who was alerted by Pocahontas' friend Nakoma, witnesses this and jealously attacks Smith. It gets worse when Thomas (Christian Bale), Smith's friend who was looking for him, shoots the native to save him. Smith tells him to run and he takes the blame when captured by other natives nearby. Thomas alerts Ratcliffe of what happened to the captain, but the governor sees this as an opportunity to eliminate his threat and continue looking for gold, rather than just lead a rescue. He attends at dawn, conveniently at the same time when Smith is plotted to be executed. Pocahontas felt that she failed to save the man she loves but when looking at Smith's compass, she sees the spinning arrow that resembled one from her dream. Meaning that Smith has been is the path for her to follow. Luckily, she stops her father in time from killing him. Convinced of her love for him and seeing that his hatred took him to a wrong path, he spares Smith. Ratcliffe is unmoved and attempts to shoot the chief. But Smith intervenes and pushes him aside, getting shot in the progress. The settlers turn on the governor and handcuff him, planning to send him back to England for high treason. Despite wanting to stay with his new love, Smith must return to England as well to have his wounds treated. Before leaving, Pocahontas and the tribe see them off and the film ends with the titular protagonist watching the settlers' ship depart.
THOUGHTS
To think I would grow offended of a movie meant for children of being inaccurate to the source material, but I am not on that bandwagon. In all honestly, I am someone that has fairly enjoyed it since childhood. Yes there were changes to the actual story of Pocahontas, but it sounds better than being on point. Our titular lead was a child during her encounter with John Smith and there wasn't romance between them when they meet. The reason that this change was made was because a relationship from two opposing sides adds the emotional impact and dramatic telling of the story. The reason that this film can be investing is because directors Mike Gabriel and Eric Goldberg made the character driven aspect the best part about it, learning a few lessons in the progress. The world has taken notice on this interpretation of the titular lead because they understood what kind of person she was in her time: She lived to be noble, wise, independent and highly spiritual. Seeing how fearless she was to intervene and save someone she cared for made me skip a heartbeat. Her song 'Colors of the Wind' is always beautiful to listen to because of the earth friendly message that land is not an inanimate object to claim/use and if we going this way, there won't be forests and animals left in this world. John Smith is at first not the kind of guy to befriend with due to his prejudice. But thankfully, Pocahontas eliminated that part of him when they were together and became more selfless and courageous in the end of their time. He loved her simply because she brought the best of him. The credits song 'If I Never Knew You' perfectly reflects how the two changed their lives for the better and their life would've remained simple if they never met. When it comes to Meeko, Flit the hummingbird, and Percy the dog, I think they were cute animal characters that help keep children viewers invested. Going into the voice cast, I thought Linda Hunt succeeded in reflecting the wise presence that Grandmother Willow is all about. Had she not been a part of Pocahontas' life, things could've been different in a bad way. Last but not least, the late David Ogden Stiers owned it when playing Governor Ratcliffe. This was a guy that was so power hungry, he didn't care what he had to do to get what he wants and every second he's onscreen, you're reminded on how despicable he is. The song 'Mine, Mine, Mine' describes how greedy he is but 'Savages' is on point expressing his extreme prejudice. That song is powerful to listen to every time because of how it expresses the truth of how prejudice generally destroys people and creates a dark path that is difficult to come back. As for Ratcliffe, it's clear that he was far from coming back. Despite defending why history was inaccurate in this story, there were still other flaws I keep griping over. First off, the animation is beautiful but I can't stand how there isn't a single drop of blood when someone gets shot. I know this is supposed to be for kids but if Disney is willing to show drips of blood when Beast gets stabbed during Beauty and the Beast, than it would've been fine if there was blood shown here. You want to talk about continuity errors, It is annoying how Ratcliffe uses the 1801 flag by the end of the first act, when this takes place in the 1600s. I know John was being chill when allowing Meeko to have the compass, but he needs that when roaming he’s never been before. Yes he says he’ll buy another one but finding your way in unknown territory is very important, whether or not you have the company of someone who knows the woods. I know Ratcliffe has an obsession with gaining fortune with gold, but what makes him think that natives want anything to do with that? They live just fine without it and if he’s encountered other natives before, he should know they’re not the kind of people that need it. And lastly, if Pocahontas saving Smith from execution actually happened, but how come no one stopped her from interfering? I mean it’s just weird how not one tried to grab her. However, I believe you can still enjoy this film for what it is once you ignore all said flaws. In short, Pocahantas is one of the bolder films from Walt Disney that deserve more respect. Whether or not you prefer historical accuracy, I believe this one is worth your while.
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