Word: disneyized
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...Pocahontas, Disney almost seems to be at pains to abandon the few facts that we do know about Pocahontas' life--she appears as a busty, English-speaking, environmentalist super-model, who is sweet on John Smith, but who nevertheless decides to remain in America with her people, respecting their ways. In real life, Pocahontas converted to Christianity, married English tobacco magnate John Rolf (who doesn't appear in the Disney version), moved to England and died there of smallpox...
...great pity of this is that Disney is such a master of pure fantasy--there is no need to get embroiled in historical fantasy. Disney has shown, time and again, that it can come up with a great story without needing a historical backdrop to provide a plot vehicle...
Here, though, the Fox studios did not approach the life of Anastasia with the primary intention of recasting history. Rather, they were only searching for the obligatory princess heroine that every animated flick features. Consider the vast range that have appeared in Disney's canon, from Snow White and Cinderella to Ariel, the princess under the sea, Pocahontas, the Indian princess, and Jasmine, the sultan's daughter, to name but a few. As Anya herself astutely observes, "I guess that every lonely girl hopes she's a princess." One can only imagine where this will lead--perhaps Disney's Diana...
...easy to bash large multi-million dollar Hollywood studio productions for abusing both history and art. The discrepancy between artistic representation and historical veracity is not new, however. Is there any essential difference between a Shakespeare play involving historical figures, such as Julius Caesar or Henry V, and a Disney or Fox production like Pocahontas or Anastasia...
Shakespeare, Disney and Fox all use history as a backdrop for a stock set of characters and a moral/political message. The primary interest is in the dramatic action and the message; the historical setting is merely a convenient agency. The historical figures are imbued with a symbolism and meaning that goes far beyond their actual personages and deeds. Instead, it reflects far more on the artist's own personality. The ultimate difference is whether the history is itself an integral part of the artistic message, such as in Glory or JFK, or if it is simply the vehicle of dramatic...