VHS : Pocahontas [1995]

Rating: - Failed historical lesson but has its redeeming points
With Pocahontas as an ancestor, I saw this movie in grade school and then followed it up with mountains of reading and research when it first came out. Disney has been well known for their distortion of stories and tale, but that generally doesn't bother me. Beauty and the Beast is my favourite movie of all time even though it differs drastically from the original tale. Disney went too far, however, when they decided to tackle American history and then twist it for their means. A few being, the aging of Pocahontas to make her old enough for romance (she would have been 12 or 13), the supposed love affair with John Smith, and the entire political correctness of the story defile an important part of our history (ie. Jamestown the first permanent English settlement, and the peace that Pocahontas was able to bring between the Powhatan tribe and the Settlers - for a piece). I will not begin to even talk about Pocahontas2's depiction of John Rolfe (her future husband in real life) as a bumbling idiot.

Historic unaccuracy aside though the movie does have its redeeming points.

1) Alan Meneken's score, like always, is phanomenal and stirs the soul. He really delivers with this one.

2) The animation is very good as well. A style slightly different than previous Disney films, the movie is a joy to watch strictly for the animation's sake.

Parents this is an enjoyable movie for both you and your children to watch. I would just suggest that you help them divide the fact from the fiction. It is also great learning tool for opening up a world to them ... encouraging them to go on a search for the truth even as they enjoy the DVD for it's entertainment's sake.

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Rating: - Underrated classic
Pocahontas is a sweeping spectacle of a film, which desreves greater recognition than it has recieved thus far. Inevitably, coming hot off the heels of The Lion King, Pocahontas was never going to match its success, but that doesnt make it any less enjoyable.

It is the first Disney animated feature to be based on historical events, and perhaps this shines through as the film is perhaps more serious than other Disney fare.

The stroy deals with Captain John Smith, who, along with a group of sailors heads to America in search of gold. However, whilst there he meets Pocahontas and the two characters are let into eachothers worlds. Things become complicated however, when Pocahontas' father and General Radcliffe (head of the mission to the 'New World') prepare to wage a war against each other due to their hatred and discriminations of the other's race. Naturally Pocahontas and John Smith fall in love, though the usual happy ending is traded in for something much more effective.

Comedy comes in the form of sidekick pals Meeko the meerkat and Flit the humming bird, and the magical element of the movie is portrayed in the form of Grandmother Willow, the advice-giving tree.

Accompanied with rich animation, beautiful music and real heart, this is an essential buy for any Disney fan.

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Rating: - a childhood memory
I remember watching this in the cinema, and i loved it, so much so that i had to drag my mum then next weekend to the cinema again! This film has the same themes of other disney films, hope, romance, conflict, freedom, truth. but it has a certain quality to it that just makes it so special.
The musical score is great- Colours of the Wing, and Just around the River Bend are two stand outs.
Buy it for the songs, and of course the story!

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Rating: - Hey Nonny Nonny!
Buy this for the music, The original score by Alan Menken is his best score and his songs are superb. What makes the music so brilliant is it's adult and heartfelt composition and orchestration. Listen to the score on it's own and you could very easily be listening to the phillamonic playing a modern classical movement. Without Menken Disney suffers badly and Pocahontas although well written and beautifully animated is my favourite because of his contribution that and the work of orchestrator Danny Troob.

Disney have lost a lot of interest in recent attempts due to Alan Menken leaving the film side of the company after "Hercules". I'm pleased to say he will be back with a new score for Disney's next animated feature "Home on the Range" next year.

In the mean time see and enjoy his earlier work and buy "Pocahontas" there really is nothing to dislike and the music may even bring a tear to your eye.

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Rating: - Excellent Disney Fun
It's always somewhat amusing when people froth and spit and moan about the liberties with the 'truth' that viewers and critics make mention of when reviewing adaptations of historical or literary works. The liberties with the plot taken with The Two Towers for example are already a source of much bile and venom.

Such it is with Pocahontas, and for no real justfiable reason... if you're looking to learn the history of Pocahontas, go watch a documentary. If you are upset about the fact your children don't know the real story, then get them a book and stop using Disney as a source of education rather than entertainment.

But I digress...

Pocahontas is an excellent Disney movie. Perhaps not quite up to the stellar qualities of Alladin and Beauty and the Beast, it is nonetheless a fantastic and enjoyable movie. It ventures pretty far from the historical truth of the inspirational historical events, but don't let that disaude you in the least... it has everything that a Disney movie should have.

The songs are up to the usual high quality, with 'colours of the wind' being a particularly lovely ballad about the western perception of 'savage' and 'backwards' cultures. Perhaps a little excessively 'politically correct' in some parts, the score nonetheless is as magical as in any other movie.

So, if you're looking for a wonderful movie to enthrall, delight and entertain you can't go much wrong with Pocahontas. If you're looking for a documentary that explains the eco-geopolitical ramifications of the western colonisation of America, then go get a documentary (or a life).