a masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (17 March 2006)

This film was, in all honesty, not what I expected. I went into the movie theater thinking I would see battles and bravery and adventure, and instead what I found was a sincere and honest portrayal of forbidden love. My heart went out to Pocahontas and her struggle to choose between two men: John Smith, the man she saves from death and thus has an extreme bond to him, and John Rolfe, a kind man who befriends her after Smith is gone. Q'Orianka Kilcher is wonderful in her portrayal of Pocahontas; she can convey a whole rush of emotions without ever speaking. Her face is fresh and curious, and this role could not have been done better. She absolutely steals the show from Colin Farrell (Smith), the supposed star of the film. He does a brilliant job also; his character has immense presence, even though he did not speak very much. I would have liked to see more of Christian Bale,though. His character was kind and generous, but not what you remember from this film. The last scenes in England were the most dramatic- the fog, the grayness, the dull weariness compared to Virginia. Malick is a marvel with his shot selection and the score was very moving.I recommend this to anyone who is tired of seeing the same old Hollywood movie. This is in a class all its own.