Pocahontas

As with all Disney films, this was a warm and charming movie with some fun set piece sing songs, and your stereotypical big baffoon baddies and your clean cut and heroic good guys!

It's a family film and it doesn't get too hung up on being historically accurate. It does romanticise the tale of Pocahontas, and she is tied very much to the land and her people, and has a heroine's role at the end, as supposed to just being a Princess looking for Mr Right.

She does of course meet a man at the end, but it's not your typical Disney ending. Much like Mulan, this was a period when the role of Disney Princess was changing.

It's worth mentioning the animation, it is fantastic with the shape and movements of the key human characters, absolutely flawless.

We must start with the foundation statement that this is not an historical retelling of the story of early America. We don't know what went on at that time, so we are off the mark at the beginning. Can you imagine the dark times that were involved in this era, with a group of settlers trying to establish some kind of community, and a Native American presence confused and afraid what was going on. So what Disney did was turn this into a folk tale which oral traditions have been doing forever (e.g. Paul Bunyan or John Henry or, more appropriately, Davey Crockett). I mean they sing and talk to trees. The romance had to be very strained. Throw in the search for gold and the greed, and you have a classic love in the face of barriers story. Also, there are a couple of terrific songs in this film. No, it's not "The Lion King" but many very good films are not "The Godfather" either. It doesn't mean they can't stand on their own.

Perhaps there should have been a disclaimer at the start of the movie saying: "Loosely based on the true story of the Indian princess" and then there wouldn't be all this fuss about a Disney movie not sticking to historical facts. First of all, when you go to see "Pocahontas" knowing it's a Disney animated feature, do you really think you're going to see an accurate depiction of events? It's not meant to be a documentary--take it for what it is, a charming, completely enjoyable work of art with stunning visuals, great songs (by Menken and Schwartz) and an uplifting tale that has a message for kids and adults. What more could you want?

Definitely a must-see Disney film for the whole family. Should create an interest for kids to learn about the actual events if they are so inclined. As entertainment, it's top-grade Disney with a hauntingly beautiful score that would fit well into any Broadway musical. The songs are splendid: 'Just Around the Riverbend', 'Colors of the Wind', 'The Virginia Company' -- and the artwork combined with the music for the gold-digging number is outstanding.

Belongs up there with 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Hunchback of Notre Dame' as one a serious film fan should not miss.

Why on earth is this movie rated so low? It's even rated lower than some of the DTV sequels. That shouldn't happen. It is historically inaccurate, but why should that be an issue? All I want is a visually stunning film with great music, and that's what I got. The animation is splendid. America looked so rich in colour, and the colours were so bright. The songs are sometimes the weakest element of an animation. Here it is the main reason why this movie is so memorable. "Colours of the Wind" is one of the most beautiful songs I've heard, and I've sung it before. Pocahontas's singing voice is none other than the Broadway singer, Judy Kuhn, who was absolutely terrific. When I was 12, I tried to sound like her. The incidental music is also definitely the most lyrical of the Alan Menken scores. The weakest element of the film, is actually the character development. The protagonist, voiced by Irene Bedard, is very well done, but most of the other characters are not as effective. Mel Gibson has a singing voice, but his speaking voice is too monotonous to my liking, and Ratcliffe isn't a very likable or memorable villain at all(one of Disney's blandest villains actually), despite enthusiastic voice work from David Ogden Stiers. But Meeko and Flit are great fun, and Grandmother Willow was good too. Don't say this film is racist. Some of the imagery is fantastic in the songs of war and animosity, and the film has a great love story and message. The ending was actually quite effective and poignant. In conclusion, one of the least memorable of the Disney movies, is so worth watching. 8.5/10. Bethany Cox

'Pocahontas' is certainly not among the best films to come out of Disney but in my humble opinion it deserves more than 5.7. I found it to be very charming, with wonderful characters, fantastic animation, stunning visuals, sweet chemistry between the lovers, lovely songs (Colours of the Wind is breathtaking), and simple Disney entertainment. I liked the way it ended, somewhat differently from other Disney films.

My only complaint is that I didn't like it when one of the Indians got killed and how Pocahontas was more concerned about never seeing John. Also the father forgiving John immediately was unrealistic. More character development was required for us to at least understand the father's character. The dialogues were a little clichéd. It was also strange to see Pocahontas communicating with John in English.

Having read about 'Pocahontas' I found it very unfair that it was labelled a racist film. Where was the racism? If anything, it's about bringing people together. It's about unconditional love that can exist both within and between races. I also think it was very unfair that the film was trashed for not being historically accurate. Come on, it's a Disney film for kids not some kind of epic film. Perhaps the unconventional ending (quite non-Disney) was too much to take for some people.

However, except for the flaws I mentioned, I think it's a great film and one can really enjoy it especially because of the visual beauty and the beautiful songs and I loved the characters Percy, Meeko and Flit. They provided some memorable comic relief.