Looking Back at Pocahontas 

Fun fact Ratcliff is the only villain from the Renaissance era not to have any interaction with the main protagonist Pochontas herself , as the closest was at the end where she saves Johnn from being executed and all the characters were they but the two never really acknowledge one another . It isn’t until the direct to video sequel where Pochontas and Ratcliff do offically meet .

All of this and let's not forget how STUNNING the music is (which, for me, has always been the most important thing about a Disney movie).

Great video. I haven't seen the movie in years, but Colors of the wind is one of my favorite songs. Has a message our world still desperately needs.

Fantastic video essay. People should stop expecting every movie to be a documentary.

I think the big problem with Savages is that even though the Powhatans are portrayed as simply reacting to the European colonists, their reaction is portrayed as irrational. Which it really wasn't. The Powhatan people were being threatened by colonial exploitation. In real life they were probably screwed either way because European diseases that would kill off 90% of the native population had already reached the Western hemisphere, but the movie leaves that out, so within the context of the film, attacking the colonists is a completely rational and understandable choice. And even seeing it as a response to the Los Angeles riots doesn't really make it better. The 1992 LA riots were violent and destructive but they were not irrational. They were a pretty justified response to decades of systemic discrimination at the hands of the police, and centuries of persecution by the US government. It got to a point where violence was the only option many people felt they had. Unfortunately many innocent people were killed and many lives were destroyed, but that also happened during the French and Russian revolutions, and even the Civil War. The problem with Pocahontas, is that even though it acknowledges racism and historical atrocities, the message of the film is just fundamentally flawed. Blaming both sides for not putting down their arms and coming to terms doesn't work when one side had no intention of ever doing that.

I really appreciate your analysis, it's how I feel about it too. There are problematic parts to Pocahontas...true, but the overall message still has merit. This movie and the Hunchback of the Notre Dame are my favorite Disney animated films as they were only Disney films to deal with darker themes and real life controversial topics in a way that children could understand. Also, the music is breathtaking in both, but I'm bias too as I loved Pocahontas since I saw it as a kid in the theaters just like you. Even then, I was excited to see a Disney film that had a female lead of another culture, who wasn't that same boring white Disney princess. Just discovered your channel with your Pretty Baby video, went on a little binge last night and watch several of your videos, liked them all, but this Pocahontas analysis made me subscribe.👍 Your channel needs more views, all your videos are so well done!

Omygoodness! thank you so much for taking the time to make this video. You made so many wonderful points that I have thought as well and others that I never knew! I have been thinking similar thoughts about this movie my whole life and Pocahontas was my favorite Disney princess growing up. As a child, I assumed everyone loved this movie because of it's message of peace and tolerance, but ofc after learning the history was saddened to see it overlooked and understandably bashed on because of it's historical innacuracies. I honestly wish Disney hadn't based it on real historical figures and had used fictional characters and events to still portray their message. I appreciate how you mentioned Ashitaka from Princess Mononoke! He is also one of (perhaps maybe even my top) my favorite Studio Ghibli characters! I never even saw the similarity between the two characters, and now I am not surprised by why I loved Princess Mononoke as well. Goodness, so many wonderful things to say but this comment would never end haha.

I'm kind of in the same spot. I've read every reason I should hate it, but I don't. It's actually my favorite!🙂 I mean, people seem to be putting Pocahontas on the same level on...maybe say... Barney's Great Adventure (that might be going too far) all because of how it represents Native American people and it's distorted history. But then they miss the good parts. This was a very brave baby step outside Disney's comfort zone. Glen Keane, Pocahontas's lead animator, said that when he was making Pocahontas, he remembered a piece of advice from The Nine Old Men: "Animate with sincerity." Essentially, you have to treat this character like a real person. That simple piece of advice made the difference, Pocahontas became unlike most Disney Princesses up to that point. Of course, this movie will always have it's fans and haters. I obviously consider myself a fan. My love of this film once got me an exclusive question in 11th grade American History Class "In the Disney film, who did Pocahontas fall in love with?" Me: "John Smith." John Smith was also arguably the first Disney Prince who rescued a person who wasn't his love interest, it was his surrogate baby brother (Thomas).

Pocahontas has always and will always be one of my top favorite Disney films! I went to see it many times in the theaters in the summer of ‘95. I just can’t understand why there is so much mediocrity regarding it. Every time I went to see it, the entire theater erupted with applause when it ended. It will always be one of my favorites!!! ❤❤❤

I think it's also interesting that she is one of the first early Disney Princesses to not end up with her love interest. We see a sacrifice from the main character and there is no miracle at the very end to reunite them. At this point, almost everyone even unconventional female protagonists like Meg, Esmeralda, and even Mulan ended up with their love interests at the end.

The character Wiggins might have been a lot smarter and saner then how the film protrays him as he suggests giving the indians gift baskets and when asked by Ratcliff why they were attacked , he says because the settling were cutting down their trees and diggin up their earth and was simple self-defense , implying he doesn’t think their just blood thristy savages .

When I hear people complain that "Savages" is such a racist song, I'm like, yeah... that's kind of the point. I was seven when this came out and I completely understood that it was meant to show us the dangers of racist and superior mindsets and depict a fictional version of history if colonizers back then had actually learned to respect the indigenous people they encountered. I knew it wasn't historically accurate but it was very blunt about how the Native people were treated "We invaded their land and cut down their trees and dug up their earth". The movie doesn't make white people look too good. My issue would be that they could have just written a completely fictional story rather than trying to use the history of Pocahontas since her story was actually really sad and not inspirational at all. When you have to warp history that much maybe just give up and start from scratch.

Thank you! You Review of Pocahontas is the only rational analysis i have seen on youtube. Of course there are problematic parts of this film, no doubt about that. But there are many great things in it as-well.

This is my favorite Disney movie. I was 9 when I first saw it and I loved Pocahontas and Grandmother Willowtree and the whole nature thing. And being in Scandinavia, it was so different and interesting. Afterwards I read anything I could find about native american legends and history. I get the critism as an adult, but I saw it as a kid and it inspired me so much so learn about another culture and I wouldnt be without that. And the music is still - I think - relevant today.

I love this!! Thank you for sharing this information.

This was a really good video. I agree with what you have to say about Pocahontas. It would be amazing if they were to do a live action remake but it would be very difficult because of how others view the film.

Great Video. Many people just immediately dismiss this film right to exist without even watching it. Im not an American and in the past years I was really shocked to realize it got so much hate ?! its a real shame because its one of their best

Did you know the animals were going to talk even having a wisecracking rooster both were dropped

I had this film recorded on an old VHS tape

One criticism that I honesty disagree with is how it’s a Disnefication of a Horrific Story. Like I get, but really? Fantasy or Fiction judge a movie on how it is not just on how off it is to the source. I mean if that’s the case How does HunchBack get a Pass when in the books everyone dies at the end.

I grew up ith stories about a great grandmother who was Indian and was so ashamed of her past she refused to pass on any tribal information. I identified with Pocahontas, Mulan, and Ariel the most out of all the "princesses".

Thank you!!

My main problem is not with the historical inaccuracies, thought that is a problem in its own right. My main problem with it is that we've heard this story many times before and many times since. Every character is a cut-and-paste archetype of the stereotypical "Who is the real savage" story. You could have made this movie be about the first Thanksgiving and little would change.

Thank you so much for this vid!❤

I was told her story by an Indigenous woman making a video about why her costume making channel wont do a video on a Pocahontas costume. Until then I didn't know she was real. She said she was kidnapped very young & ripped from her husband & new baby. Her life was held over her father as leverage. She was brainwashed, r*ped, & married off to a settler who took her back to England. The English were considering leaving the colonies. She was made to tell them that they shouldn't leave bc they "fixed" her or "civilized" her or some such white supremacist nonesense. She was taken against her will & forced to be a tool used against all the people she loved & was stolen from. They made her say they were wrong & needed white people to help them. This is the story I was told. Not a love story, a horror story of Stockholm syndrome & white supremacist violence. Using her at all, again, after all they did to her already, after using her to create a white supremacist narrative that killed millions, sickens me. It feels like the moral of the story is that colonialism wasn't all bad if even she could find something to love. I dont know the historical accuracy of the truce portrayed in the movie, but I know many such peace treaties like it were made. The story portrays this as good, vurtious, & the morally right choice. It fails to mention what happened next. Given that context, don't you think it's a little rich to act like fighting back would have been wrong? Doesn't it feel disgusting that they portrayed the man meant to represent her kidnapper & r*pist as her love interest who she wanted to leave her would-be husband for when reality she was taken from him & I think they killed him in the process if I remember correctly. I'm sorry, but the historical info you provided doesn't match with what I was told.

Such a great summary, thank you for bringing common sense into the modern trends of undeserved hatred and cancelling for this movie

Do you know if theres any news for a Live Action remake ?

This movie’s got plenty of good moments but I’m not fond of it. I just can’t ever buy Matoaka/Pocahontas and John Smith as a romantic couple and lots of the themes were done better in Princess Mononoke.

Thank you so much, not enough people praise this movie and I gotta say always have and always will say that this is my favorite movie EVER. Not enough words can describe how I feel. But the last sentence you said that some people get their magic from Simba's pride, but I too get it from Pocahontas❤ 😭🥲🥲

hey dude, I read you're coment on Briana's video and glad you enjoy the video

I don't think Simba is white-coded. Straight, possibly yes. But, not white! The movie takes place in East Africa and is based on African tribal relationships. The Broadway version of the character is always played by a little black boy. Hell, in the game Twisted Wonderland, which features humanized versions of The Lion King characters, the Simba analog, Cheka, is a little boy with brown skin and red hair. Since the game is licenced by Disney, I think that is the closest thing we'll ever get to an official animated humanized Simba and proves that Simba is intended to be seen as black. However, I agree that Simba is allowed to be more flawed thanks to being a guy and not human. Disney movies like this and Princess and the Frog have a HUGE problem of not allowing the bipoc characters to have flaws. I'm half Mexican. Trust me. I'm super flawed. The same can be said for all other bipoc people. Bipoc characters need to have flaws in order to come off as well rounded and to endear us to them just like their white counterparts.

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1:44 - 1:54 **Fake Native American senator from Massachusetts has left the chat**

I only have one word to describe the movie: Yikes Not only did it not age well at all, but it made many egregiously inaccuracies that misrepresented the torment the Native Americans suffered at the hands of the colonists. Pocahontas's real story was actually rather dark and depressing, with her meeting a rather tragic end. Disney proved that they are still stuck in their bigoted ideas, regardless of how much they are willing to pander to modern society.

Pocahontas sucks thats it 😡🙃

I love your reviews, but this one just ain’t it 😕 You still lovely as hell tho