Their relationship also needed its own love song. Look at the big four from the Renaissance. The Little Mermaid has “Kiss the Girl,” Beauty and the Beast has “Beauty and the Beast,” Aladdin has “A Whole New World,” and The Lion King has “Can You Feel the Love Tonight.” For a film that strived to be listed among these films so desperately, it missed out on having a strong love song between the two leads. A lot of people aren’t aware of this, but at one point Pocahontas did actually have such a love song, called “If I Never Knew You”. This song gave me multiple chills when I first watched it, and to me dramatically improved the relationship between John Smith and Pocahontas. They both seem resigned to John Smith’s fate but they maintain their meeting was a good one. It’s a great segment that should definitely have been in the original edition. It was cut for some reason, but it still exists on the 10th anniversary edition DVD and can be found here:
My favorite thing about this film is the soundtrack. It’s phenomenal. “Colors of the Wind” is a beautiful piece, and would no doubt make my top 10 Disney songs. My second favorite, “Just Around the Riverbend” would likely make my top 20 and is also amazing. Judy Khun has a perfect voice for the atmosphere established in Pocahontas, and both of her songs top my list for the film. As for the ones Judy Khun doesn’t sing, “Steady as the Beating Drum,” “Listen With Your Heart,” and “Savages (Part 1)” are all great accompanying pieces. “Savages (Part 2)” may be my favorite reprise in the entire canon (I say this for like five Disney reprises, so you know). I love the way the voices of the men are intertwined with Pocahontas as she sprints to save John Smith. Even though there isn’t any fighting during the climax, this song alone really builds up the tension of the scene. There are a couple duds in the soundtrack such as “The Virgina Company” and “Mine Mine Mine” but they really don’t detract too much from the quality of the rest of the soundtrack.
Okay, so I may have let my love of the soundtrack really influence this film’s ranking. The film can, at times, drag on a little. And sure, it can get a little preachy every now and then, but that doesn’t really bother me too much. While not quite what those who were working on it hoped it would be, Pocahontas is still beautifully animated and filled with amazing songs and a great character in Pocahontas.
Next Up: This film contains a brief cameo of at least one Disney character from another film within the canon.