Pocahontas

Is this one of Disney’s hits or misses? I watched the animated historical fiction romance musical movie Pocahontas, released on June 23, 1995. Directed by Mike Gabriel and Eric Goldberg, it takes place briefly in London, England and mainly in the New World in 1607. Starring Irene Bedard, Judy Kuhn, and Mel Gibson, it is rated G.

Pocahontas is a Native American who’s the daughter of their tribe’s leader Chief Powhatan. She’s free spirited and is trying to figure out the meaning of a dream she had. John Smith is an English man who came to travel to the New World with a bunch of men from England, led by Governor Ratcliffe. He’s excited for the adventure he’ll find. Pocahontas and John Smith meet and develop a strong romance. However, everyone else in both their groups have an immediate distrust of each other. They are prepared to kill each other and war seems imminent. Can our two lovers find a way to peace?

This movie came out during the Disney Renaissance, which for those that don’t know, is the Walt Disney Animation Studios movies released from 1989-1999. This is generally viewed as the weakest film from that era of Disney. I will discuss if it is the weakest or not. As for how this movie handles the portrayal of Native Americans, I would say it has both negatives and positives. Anyone who knows the real story of the characters depicted in the movie knows that this film is historically inaccurate. Considering real life had the colonists causing problems for the Natives, the movie’s portrayal of both sides being wrong, while usually a good thing to portray, is problematic for the victimized indigenous peoples. It also does not help that, as I’ll mention later, none of the Native Americans beyond Pocahontas are well-written characters. Disney additionally, according to reports, did not consult with any tribes for this movie. Now having said that, there are good things too. Their way of life is portrayed as a perfectly legitimate way of life, with the movie making it quite clear they are not savages. Pocahontas is also a strong female Native character that Native girls could potentially look up to despite the film’s flaws. The movie also emphasizes the Native Americans’ connection to nature, which is true to life, also sending some environmentally friendly vibes. If you look at Disney’s history, they famously have some poorly aged and offensive portrayals of Native Americans in the early years. Two good examples of this are the movies Melody Time and Peter Pan. By comparison, this portrayal, while still not perfect, does still have positives to it. I think it is a well intentioned portrayal, they just didn’t do enough research.

In regards to the story, while it goes against what historically happened, the movie can be enjoyed as is, just like other enjoyable historically inaccurate animated movies like Anastasia and Balto. The messages it teaches are still important. Showing the two sides get prepared to kill each other in war over misunderstandings is relevant to preventable conflicts being started and the death that war brings. The story also brings to mind racism, with the Native American and white characters showing contempt for the others’ races. The Disney Renaissance carried probably Disney’s best hand drawn animation and this film is no different. It is very beautiful to look at. The other thing Disney excelled at especially during the Disney Renaissance is songs. Again, this movie has amazing musical numbers. Most famously is the Academy Award winning song Colors of the Wind. You also have to love the maturity this film brings compared to other Disney movies, especially with how it ends. The story has much to offer.

The characters have a few good offerings. Pocahontas is an empowered lead. Like the other Disney Princesses around this time, her focus was mainly on wanting more out of life. While that may have been overused, it’s easy to see why, as it led to effective storytelling. The way she tries to get around what her father wants for her is interesting. Her willingness to stand up for what she believes in, which she gets better at later in the film, helps make her a good role model. John Smith is also an interesting character. He starts off right away being kinder and more understanding than the others he’s with, setting him up in a moral way. He nevertheless does have stuff to learn about accepting other ways of life, which like Pocahontas, he improves on. They both are characters you care about, with their romance having good chemistry. However, aside from these two, the characters don’t stand out. Everyone else is played very generically. While the animal sidekicks consisting of the raccoon Meeko, the bird Flit, and the dog Percy are all cute and fun to watch, they aren’t quite as entertaining as most Disney sidekicks.

The film’s biggest problem is the villain, Governor Ratcliffe. Disney has created some of the greatest villains of all time. The Disney Renaissance, again, did the best at creating great villains. I think every Disney Renaissance movie had a great main villain, except for this film. Even ignoring that the real John Ratcliffe wasn’t a villain, he’s an incredibly lame villain. The trademark of a great villain is either being really entertaining or being really complex or both. Like most of the characters, everything he says is generic, so he fails at being entertaining. His motivations involve manipulating his men and wanting to kill the Natives so he can steal the gold he thinks they have. These are typical bad guy motives that make him completely one dimensional. I also think the film having a villain hurt it, as the plotline of the two sides both being in the wrong over a misunderstanding is made less strong by the leader of the white men being a villain. I think the movie should have had no villain. Governor Ratcliffe could have wanted what was best for his men, and been misunderstood just like Chief Powhatan was. While this is Pixar, movies like Inside Out show that a Disney movie doesn’t need a villain to still be a masterpiece. Had they gone this direction, I think the movie could have been better and more effectively sent the message. All the voice actors definitely give the best performances they can. It’s just that outside of our two lovers, the characters aren’t that strong.

Overall, there are positives and negatives to this movie. I do lean more towards the positive side. I also agree that this is the weakest film of the Disney Renaissance. The Disney Renaissance is my favorite era of Disney, with me personally thinking every other film made during that era was a masterpiece. This is a decent film. Compared to the other films of the era, it is disappointing. But if you’re able to enjoy it for what it is, it can be a good time. You can enjoy this movie, if you “listen with your heart.”

The movie represented a period of time when Native Americans had full control of their land. As we are well aware, times have changed. Through broken promises and invasions the United States citizens stole the Natives’ land from them, forcing them into reservations. Nowadays, Native Americans often have greater struggles than most Americans, with them not getting the better access to things that make life better in general. Even Native Americans who don’t live in tribes often face challenges. We can do something about this. I did already cover an issue about racism, but addressing the social issue of helping Native Americans is more complex than just race. The first thing you can do is educate yourself on what really happened with Christopher Columbus. This can help to see the importance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day more than Columbus Day. Learning the real story of Pocahontas, as well as several real stories throughout history about Native Americans can help your understanding of their plight. Though it is not Indigenous Peoples’ Day anymore this year, it’s good to get involved with it when it happens to show support.

Thanksgiving is coming soon. With the first Thanksgiving being founded on the Native Americans helping the settlers learn how to grow food and eating with them, what better way to show you’re thankful than by getting involved with Native American causes around the holiday? After all, the Natives helped save our potential ancestors which ensured many could be here today. Also incorporating Native American heritage into the holiday is a great way to show respect. While not all the food we eat on Thanksgiving is from the Native Americans back then, some of it is. You can look up which foods are and make sure to focus on them.

Recontextualizing Thanksgiving to honor the Native Americans is a change we should consider. We can support businesses owned by Native Americans, with research given to find ones owned by them. It is worth considering reading books written by Indigenous people. We can donate towards causes that support Native Americans, like giving to charities. We can also form peaceful protests and write to your congressman. We can research the Indigenous tribes related to the area we live in and focus on them. We can try to help get some land back, as that has had some success already. Lastly, we can do our best to stop the spread of harmful stereotypes.

What happened to the Native Americans is one of the worst things to be associated with our country. We can’t change the past, but what we can do is change the future. While times may have changed, the Native Americans are still with this. And they suffer from the actions of those that lived in the past. It is no one’s fault that lives today, but in the shared human need to end suffering, it can be a very kind thing to help those that need it. Though tribes may not live the exact same lives as us, that makes them no less human. This year, I would like to be thankful that I inspired people to help make change.