Review #26 | Pocahontas

John Smith: Pocahontas, look at me. I'd rather die tomorrow...than live a hundred years without knowing you.

Pocahontas, 1995

Capt. John Smith leads a rag-tag band of English sailors & soldiers to the New World to plunder its riches for England (or, more precisely, for Governor Ratcliffe, who comes along for the ride). Meanwhile, in this "New World," Chief Powhatan has pledged his daughter, Pocahontas, to be married to the village's greatest warrior. Pocahontas, however, has other ideas. She has seen a vision of a spinning arrow, a vision she believes tells her change is coming. Her life does indeed change when the English ship lands near her village. Between Ratcliffe, who believes the "savages" are hiding the gold he expected to be plentiful, and Powhatan, who believes these pale newcomers will destroy their land, Smith and Pocahontas have a difficult time preventing all-out war, and saving their love for each other.

Pocahontas is a colorful animated feature that is unique in the art style. The animation is beautiful and uses the colors of nature and experiments and various different colors. It uses diverse perspectives and effects in musical montages with powerful singular colors like or orange, red, and blue. The background animation looks gorgeous. Character designs look more like humans with small eyes and with agreeable human body ration.

The story gives us the two different cultural groups of people and contrasts them. I love how they do that. The musical numbers are pretty good. I loved the song ‘Savages’ that captured the war sequence. Although the story seems to bore here and there, it is fun and heartwarming.

Inside Outside Rating: 66%