Agenda-driven fantasy with some lovely animation

Rating: 7/10 (21 May 2020)

The British arrive in Virginia, under the leadership of gold-mad Ratcliffe. Captain John Smith meets Pocahontas, daughter of the local chief, and their budding romance may be instrumental in staving off hostilities - or perhaps it may make things worse.
Disney's adaptation of the Pocahontas is a very loose adaptation indeed, and I don't just mean the comedy animal sidekicks or spirit-tree-Grandma. The story is greatly glamourised, not leasr in the character design of the beauty queen native American princess (who probably wasn't actually a princess). British leader Ratcliffe is clearly insane and all his men are sheep except Smith. The situation is clearly noble native Americans on the receiving end of violence and theft of land and resources from the vile British, which may explain why Mel Gibson was attracted to it. I'm sure there is some substance to this viewpoint, but this animated feature is very one-note.
There is some lovel animation, and Alan Mencken's score is good, but the songs are rather lacklustre, even the much-feted Colors Of The Wind. This is one of the more disappointing entries from Disney's renaissance years.