Yet Another Hollywood Deception

by Richard A. Cheatham, Press Media Group, LLC

I recently attended a screening of “The New World.” I’d hoped that Terrence Malick, producer/director/writer, might finally have told the fascinating true story of America’s founding at Jamestown in 1607.

Alas, no...Malick, just as the producer of Disney’s “Pocahontas” before him, descended into the depths of fluffy creative manipulation masquerading as history. Too bad Hollywood types don’t just leave history alone if they can’t stop lying.

Hollywood often doesn’t feel real history, real people, even real romance are interesting enough. Time and again, they overlook classic elements of “human nature” and their stories and characters thus frequently come across as wooden and one-dimensional. That’s certainly the case in “The New World.”

This could’ve been a great film if the fascinating true story had been employed as opposed to the fake romance centerpiece of this boring two-and-a-half hour deception. Malick’s central theme is a romance between Captain John Smith and Pocahontas, one missing from the historical record... because it didn’t happen. Pocahontas’ documented romance resulting in a marriage and a son with John Rolfe, took place from 1613 when the two met until her death in 1617. Her real romance began years after Smith’s time in Virginia, from the spring of 1607 (when Pocahontas was ten or eleven) until the fall of 1609 (when Pocahontas was twelve or thirteen).

A friend of mine said, “Smith comes across in the movie as a love-sick puppy.” Right on the money! Malick’s shallow Smith isn’t the fascinating Smith of the historical record. No “love sick puppy,” Smith was a boastful, opportunistic and bold self-made man who, with more useful leadership qualities, perception and experience than the high-born gentlemen at Jamestown, had his thoughts laser-fixed upon the success of the failing colony. He was not in a constant revery fixated upon a little Indian girl.

Leading settlers who were literally starving to death, Smith was indeed interested in Pocahontas. It had something to do with the fact that this particular little girl was the daughter of the great native King Powhatan who had stores of food.

Some persist in saying Smith and Pocahontas could have had a romance. (George W. Bush could have had a romance with Hillary Clinton.) Could there’ve been a friendship, perhaps even with affection, between the man and the little girl? Sure. Are all friendships romances? No.

If you’ve an interest in Pocahontas, Smith and Jamestown, read the amazing true story written by Smith, Rolfe, Hamor, Strachey, Percy, Archer, Dale and others themselves in “Jamestown Narratives” by Edward Wright Haile. The book is far more interesting than the movie. See this film if you’re willing to sit still in boredom for a very long time.

Beware the gushing praise you’ll hear from those whose paychecks dictate their values and their publicly expressed opinions. Remember human nature...many people have an allegiance to money over truth.

©2006 by Richard A. Cheatham. All rights reserved. Mr.Cheatham is a professional speaker/writer and is syndicated through Press Media Group, LLC. Contact him through, Living History Assoc., Ltd., at www.LHALtd.com or DrawBackVeil@aol.com.