A Review Of The Movie Pocahontas
The story of Pocahontas and John Smith is well known. Strangers immediately to lovers. Pocahontas saves Smith and he falls in love. A simple story but very inaccurate. It is hard to know what truly happened but it can be assumed that. The animated Disney classic Pocahontas is untrue. The New World is a movie that is closer to the source material, the accounts of John Smith. It is intriguing but moves very slowly. While there is some historically accurate information it was mostly made for entertainment purposes.
When John Smith went to the colonies, he recorded the events that occurred. He later wrote a book expanding the original letters. Smith published three books but what was interesting about this was the story of Pocahontas saving Smtih's life was not mentioned in 1608 or 1612, but appeared in print for the first time in 1624, the later print. The New World follows his accounts very closely even having someone read parts of the writing. There are creative liberties taken in this movie. For example, it creates a romantic relationship between Pocahontas and John Smith, but in reality, they were probably friends. The time and environment being portrayed are decently accurate. The ships, the time it takes to sail, the building of the settlement, the health of the settler, the attire of the Natives, etc.
The movie mostly voices the feelings of Smith. Those around him are present but they are just there to build the plot. At certain points, their struggles can be seen. However, it cannot be seen how they truly feel. It is even worse for the Natives. They are represented as wild animals. When they speak there are few subtitles, the dialogue is mostly used for filling the space. The voice of Pocahontas isn’t present either, this is most likely for two reasons. First, she is used for John Smith’s character and to make the movie as a whole more interesting. Secondly not much is known of her what is known is written by others. The entirety of the movie is about Smith and what he feels.
There was only one moment in the movie that surprised me. This was the beginning when smith is locked up on the boat. He is not usually portrayed this way. Whenever people think of John Smith he is seen as the hero, the friend and/or lover of Pocahontas. It was strange to see our beloved hero as a criminal. I do appreciate this part of the movie though. The movie is more or less showing Smith’s true colors. He was a trouble maker, disliked by his comrades. If The New World did something right it was the opening scene.
The New World was absolutely glammed up for Hollywood. It's obvious from the beginning simply to the actor who plays Smith. He is a very attractive man who looks nothing like Smith. This movie is supposed to be entertaining to the viewer so the director took many creatives liberties. For example, how quickly Smith and Pocahontas learn each other's language. If you look at the writings of Smith you can see that he only knew a few words. It is also very unrealistic for them to learn a language that fasts. The director was also really pushing for a romance between the two. It is understandable why the movie was made the way it was. To make money and for people to see it had to be somewhat entertaining.
The New World is a great movie but the plot path it follows just is not right. It could be much better. John Smith and Pocahontas's story will most likely always be told the same. Altogether the movie was quite enjoyable historical inaccuracies and all.
