Jim On Film
Page 4 of 5

Since its release, many have attacked the film for being politically correct and environmentally sound, but these claims are not warranted. First of all, just because a movie stars Native American characters does not imply that it is politically correct. Native Americans are people and deserve to have stories told about them as much as anybody does. Furthermore, the film does not stereotype them or present them in stereotypical situations. Being accurate is not the same as being politically correct. There is a big difference. Perhaps more daring than any live-action film would portray, Pocahontas shows the flaws of the Native characters. In the two Savages songs, the Native characters are shown as being as culturally biased as the English characters are. In fact, the Native characters are shown as having difficulties with Pocahontas’ relationship with John Smith just as much as the English characters have difficulties with John Smith’s relationship with Pocahontas. Similarly, Ratcliffe’s attempt to kill Powhatan is no less vicious than Powhatan’s attempt to kill John Smith; the desire for blood on the side of the Natives is no weaker than the desire on the part of the English. The fault is shared between the two groups, both of them are ready to kill as a result of their biased beliefs. This would not be the portrayal if the film was attempting to do anything more than present accurate characterizations. However, because this is Disney, most of this film’s critics would consider it nothing but extremely politically correct unless it portrayed a completely negative image of Native Americans; in which case, they would then attack Disney for that. If one watches closely, though, it instead presents a multi-dimensional view by painting both parties as victims and antagonists. Because of this, Pocahontas rises above many other historical films which offer more simplistic portrayals of Native Americans.

(c) Disney

As for pushing an environmental agenda, the film speaks for itself. Just as many Native American cultures valued respect for nature, the worldview presented in the film suggests the same. But this is a far cry from pushing an environmental agenda. Just because a film values nature doesn’t mean it’s pushing anything. If the film ignored this view, it would not be accurately portraying Native Americans, but most critiques would not have refrained from this criticism unless the film supported the misuse of environmental resources, in which case, they would hitch up a whole different bandwagon in which to attack Disney.

Similarly, the film also doesn’t condemn hunting. While Pocahontas prevents John Smith from shooting the bear in Colors of the Wind, this is because of what John Smith doesn’t know--that the bear is a mother. In early images of the film, a Native man runs through a herd of deer carrying a bow, which is a weapon used in hunting. In addition to this, the Natives are shown spearing fish in the water. When looking at both images, it is clear that the film does not intend to shun hunting.

Besides these issues, some have taken shot at the film’s presentation of Native religious beliefs. Unlike many other films (such as Free Willy), Pocahontas never preaches or endorses belief in spirits or in other beliefs of the tribe. Instead, these beliefs are presented as the historically correct view of these people who did believe in the presence of spirits and a Great Spirit. To ignore this would be to candy coat, and hearing them in the story is just as appropriate as was the presentation of Christian beliefs in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.