Pocahontas (1995 film)
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Pocahontas was The Walt Disney Company's 33rd animated feature film. The film was first released on June 16, 1995.
It is based loosely on the encounter between the colonists of Jamestown, Virginia with the native Powhatan tribe, and in particular presents a highly romanticized account of the meeting between Pocahontas and John Smith. It is a musical; the songs have music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz.
The film starred the voice acting of Mel Gibson as John Smith, Irene Bedard and Judy Kuhn as Pocahontas (speaking voice and singing voice, respectively), and David Ogden Stiers as John Ratcliffe as well as his footman Wiggins. Before his death, comedian John Candy had recorded a large amount of material for a turkey character, named Redfeather, who was to be Pocahontas's sidekick. Percy, too, was supposed to talk as well. Executives perceived the character to lighten the tone of the film excessively, and the turkey was replaced with the characters Meeko the raccoon and Flit the hummingbird.
Many at Disney had high hopes for the movie while it was in production. Then-studio head Jeffrey Katzenberg regarded Pocahontas as a more prestigious project than The Lion King, and even believed that it had a chance of earning an Academy Award nomination for "Best Picture", as Beauty and the Beast had.
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Criticisms
Upon release, however, Pocahontas was criticized by many for presenting stereotypical images of Native Americans, and by others for presenting a ludicrously distorted version of the historical events on which it was based. Some felt, for example, that Pocahontas looked more like the model Naomi Campbell than a Native American (however, Irene Bedard was the model for the character). Also, many Native Americans disliked the film because the warrior Kocoum was given a hateful frown and over-excessive warrior attitude, not to mention ill treatment of his future wife, Pocahontas. Given the quality and popularity of the films which preceded it – The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and especially The Lion King – it is perhaps inevitable that Pocahontas would be found wanting, both critically and commercially. With hindsight, the film can be seen as marking the end of the late-80s-to-mid-90s "renaissance" of Disney animation.
It was followed by a direct-to-video sequel, Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World in 1998.
Real historical figures who appear in the film
Fictional figures from the film
- Kocoum (voiced by James Apaumut Fall) is Pocahontas' potential husband and one of her father's bravest warriors. This noble warrior's suit is supported by her father, who sees him as a fine heir to chiefhood, but does not see his seriousness nor does not know (much less care) that Pocahontas really hates him. In the deleted song, "Dancing to the Wedding Drum", he promises to protect her from any danger and love her for who she was (also, he smiled at her, placed his hands on her shoulders, and finished building their house); in the final version of the film, however, he never tells her this in person and it is left to Powhatan to say them for him. He very rarely smiles (which offended many Native American people; see above), never actually talks to Pocahontas, and he is too serious-minded for the playful Pocahontas (although he shows subtle concern for her throughout the movie). During his confrontation with John Smith in a later part of the film, Kocoum pushes Pocahontas out of his way, making her fall to the ground with little to no injuries to her body. He is accidentally killed by Thomas, which enrages Powhatan. There is some evidence that the historical Pocohontas was betrothed to someone called Kocoum before her baptism.
- Nakoma (voiced by Michelle St. John) is Pocahontas' best friend. Upon overhearing Chief Powhatan's warning about the Jamestown settlers she does not want Pocahontas to get hurt or killed. She is one of the few Native American women who does not have long, flowing hair in the film. She instead has her hair tied into a makeshift bun, with the rest of her hair coming out from it. She has bangs, too, that hide most of her forehead. There is no historical basis for this character.
Trivia
- The Meeko plushie became a legend in the plushophile community, even inspiring a unit of length (the Meekometer).
- Pocahontas' best friend Nakoma appeared in the sequel.
- In Aladdin and the King of Thieves, the Genie appears as Pocahontas, complete with her deerskin dress.
- Because of Kocoum dying in the movie, he never appeared in the sequel. In reality, he was actually alive when John Rolfe came to Virginia.
See also
External links
- Pocahontas at the Internet Movie Database
- The Big Cartoon DataBase entry for Pocahontas
- The Real Pocahontas compares the historical Pocahontas to the Disney version
