Examples Of The Movie Pocahontas

Disney not only fictionalizes accounts from American history, but romanticizes them as well. Since the film is directed towards children, many of them do not learn the real history of Pocahontas before watching the film thus believing the scripted story to be factual. The European men in the film all look like individuals whereas the Native Americans all look the same making it harder to differentiate between them. This could symbolize the idea that all Native Americans are the same in personality and behavior. Pocahontas was the only one in the film that stood out from the pack, she was the exception. Great emphasis is put on imagination and emotions to assist in decision making as the older neoclassical approach of using intellect is rejected.

There are multiple reasons why Walt Disney’s film Pocahontas is not historically accurate. First, when she met John Smith she was aged 11 or 12, in the film her age is bumped up significantly to go along with her and John Smith’s romance. Her age was never given in the film, but you can tell that she is a young adult. In the movie, Pocahontas and John Smith meet instantly due to his ship landing in America. However, they actually met when Smith and two other men were ambushed by Indians. Two months later, after Powhatan decides to murder the men Pocahontas throws herself between John Smith and the attackers causing Powhatan to back off.

According to the American Historical Association, “When asked about their intense reaction to the film, some described feeling as though they had just experienced slavery. The movie felt believable, they reported, due not only to the caption indicating its basis in fact, but because the setting and characters looked authentic” (Toplin, 1). That just goes to show how historically accurate the makers of the film were going for to show just how bad slavery really was, even if it repulses people. There are historians out there who on the record confirmed the historical accuracy of 12 Years a Slave. “At least two historians, Sue Eakin, and Joseph Logsdon, have confirmed that Northup presented a remarkably accurate picture of antebellum slavery and plantation society near the Red River in Louisiana” (Toplin, 1). For historians to say that the film is “remarkably accurate” shows the seriousness those involved went to, to ensure the historical accuracy

The new world was accurate for the most part, but there were few inaccuracies that occurred during the movie. For one, it is not historically proven that the relationship between Pocahontas and John Smith was a romance relationship, as portrayed in the movie. In The New World, Smith leaves Jamestown because of orders from the king, when in reality it has been proven he left Jamestown in 1609 because of a wounded knee when his powder horn exploded. In the movie Pocahontas is shown being given over to the settlers, this is inaccurate because Pocahontas was kidnapped

Sophie Gilbert says that the “environmentalist message” was powerful and unique. The facts, sadly, are not so positive. The movie would have still been great, even if names where changed, but would it still have appeal? Many people, children and adults alike, grow up thinking that they know the story of Pocahontas. A Powhatan Chief, Roy Crazy Horse, stated “It is unfortunate that this sad story, which Euro-Americans should find embarrassing, Disney makes ‘entertainment’ and perpetuates a dishonest and self-serving myth at the expense of the Powhatan Nation”, although creators of the movie may have thought that it would be harmless, people could still find offense to Pocahontas. James Allen, who knew the history of Matoaka, decided that “turning a story like that into something fluffy and “empowering” is just uncomfortable” and if the real history was ever made known among the public, people would most likely agree.

In reality it is roughly based on historical truths and not entirely factual. There is a clear difference and it is often lost in the cinematic glamour of a great story. “The New World” is no exception and has clearly created a loosely fact based adaptation of the story of John Smith and Pocahontas. In summary fact based period films by Hollywood can easily mislead people into believing anything when it is based on facts. Moreover, the reason the “The New World” took this approach was simply to make the movie more appealing to the

In a scene where Pocahontas and John Smith had their first face-to-face encounter, John Smith who is holding his gun up ready to shoot but instead lowers his gun upon laying eyes on Pocahontas, obviously taken aback by her beauty. This shows how native American women romanticized by the media and portrayed as being mesmerizing to men. Movie-makers had taken a more sexualized approach in creating Pocahontas’s appearance as can be seen by how Pocahontas wears a mini dress that bears much skin and she was given a voluptuous figure with a tiny waist, adding how her hair was placed to attract attention throughout the movie (van Wormer, & Juby, 2015)(Ono, & Buescher, 2001). In the case where Pocahontas sings the famous Colours of the Wind soundtrack, Pocahontas dances in a sensuous way moving very closely to John Smith despite how they just met. This gives off the meaning that Native American women are very open, exotic and a sexualized image (Hopkins, 2005)(R, & Berger, 2004)

[4] Disney even goes on further to suggest that their intentions have a modern relevance when they say that “It is an important message to a generation to stop fighting, stop killing each other because of the color of your skin” (Pocahontas 37). It is quite clear that Disney never intended to write or rewrite history, as they have been so viciously attacked for doing. They are writing about tolerance and understanding, while at the same time they are giving back some respect to the indigenous people of America. James Pentecost, the producer of the film, feels that “moviemakers shouldn’t be handcuffed when using real stories as jumping-off places for works of entertainment” (Kim 24). Disney simply liked the idea of Pocahontas; they liked the message that it conveyed, and they made it applicable to Hollywood.

John Smith's tales of the Indian princess, Pocahontas, have, over time, encouraged the evolution of a great American myth. According to this myth, which is common knowledge to most Americans, Pocahontas saved Smith from being killed by her father and his warriors and then fell in love with John Smith. Some versions of the myth popular among Americans include the marriage of Smith and Pocahontas. Although no one can be sure of exactly what happened almost four-hundred years ago, most historians agree that the myth is incorrect. Pocahontas did not save John Smith's life from "savages" and never showed any affection for him. The events of her life differ greatly from the myth Americans have created.

By far the most questionable stereotype and misinterpretation in the film is the way Disney chose to portray Pocahontas, specifically her age, characteristics, and body image, which according to historical records and cultural belief, was completely inaccurate and therefor unauthentic. The article Using Critical Race Theory to Analyze How Disney Constructs Diversity, once again provides insight into the differences between the Disney film and the authentic native culture. It says, “When Compared to White Disney heroines, Pocahontas is portrayed as sexier, more sensual, and exotic, bare skin

12 Years a Slave was an outstanding representation of the lives of a slave. It was accurate, heartfelt, and detailed. It portrays the feelings of Solomon and the other slaves perfectly. The film really makes you think about the people and the situation back in the 1840’s. It is an exceptional historical film that teaches you the slavery times and the life of Solomon Northup. A freeman turned to a slave and put through a terrible life experience that no one should ever have to go

The animated Walt Disney movie Pocahontas is based on a true life story of a young Powhatan Indian girl named Pocahontas who falls in love with John Smith. In the making of the movie, Walt Disney, attempts to relate to the early 17th Century historic event of Europeans settling in Jamestown; however, Disney did not portrait the true story. Disney rewrote the story by making it a beautifully romantic and animated love story like a Cinderella fairytale.

Back in 1995, as a 20 year old woman, I was, absolutely, still in love with everything Disney. I was still very much enamored with the romance and fairy tale aspects of all their stories and movies. So when the Walt Disney Company released the animated feature “Pocahontas” in the summer of my 20th year, I had to see it. At the time, I thought I had hit the jackpot with this movie. “An American legend comes to life” is the tagline to get viewers interested in this movie. [1] A heroin, whom was a beautiful Indian and a love story, who could ask for more from a Disney movie, I thought to myself. Now, being ignorant of the true facts about the Indian woman Pocahontas and even about Indian culture and history itself, I took this story more

I find that the only item that brings Pocahontas and Avatar somewhat together is the fact that the plots of the stories are somewhat similar. Humans invade the “new world” in both stories, and the entire plot in both stories is generally based upon the humans fighting to take what they want, and the natives, or the Na’vi, fighting to preserve it. “We will fight terror with terror,” (Cameron, 2009). As for the

Pocahontas. Americans know her as the beautiful, Indian woman who fell in love with the white settler John Smith and then threw her body upon the poor white captive to protect him from being brutally executed by her own savage tribe. The magical world of Walt Disney came out with their own movie version several years ago portraying Pocahontas as a tan, sexy Barbie doll figure and John Smith as a blond-haired, blue-eyed muscular Ken doll. Although Disney attempts to instill racial tolerance, inter-racial friendship, and nonviolent resolutions in Pocahontas, they contribute to the inaccurate Indian woman stereotype that has evolved from such stories. While it can be argued that Disney has