At the beginning of the Seventeenth Century, the time of the English colonization of North America, Captain John Smith leaves the Jamestown fort to explore another area and trade with the Indians, but he is captured. The princess Pocahontas asks her father to spare Captain Smith's life and they fall in love for each other. When he returns to the colony, he becomes the president of Jamestown and finds people starving, but Pocahontas brings supplies, saves them and falls in disgrace with her people. When the Indians realize that the English will not leave their country they attack and much physical, cultural and emotional conflict ensues.
Directed by
Terrence Malick
Written by
Terrence Malick
Starring
Colin Farrell (Captain Smith); Q'orianka Kilcher (Pocahontas); Christopher Plummer (Captain Newport); Christian Bale (John Rolfe); August Schellenberg (Powhatan); Wes Studi (Opechancanough); David Thewlis (Wingfield); Yorick van Wageningen (Captain Argall); Raoul Trujillo (Tomocomo); Michael Greyeyes (Rupwew); Kalani Queypo (Parahunt); Ben Mendelsohn (Ben); Noah Taylor (Selway); Brian F. O'Byrne (Lewes); Ben Chaplin (Robinson). Please contact SFC to add other cast members and characters.
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One for the Anthropologists
Mark Banks (United Kingdom)
Opinion: Limited Recommendation
I don't want to be too harsh here, but being honest I didn't think much of The New World. I felt there was no real story, no real depth to the characters and little original with respect to the on-screen action and technical aspects of the film. By the end of the 135 minutes I didn't feel I knew any of the characters any better than I did at the beginning and had learnt little, if anything, new about the Native Americans' way of life - though doubtless some anthropologists may find something of interest. I also wasn't enamoured with the melancholic character of Pocahontas: okay her life is difficult and there's a huge culture as well as romantic clash going on, but please give me something of her personality to get enthusiastic about! Similar could be said of Captain Smith and John Rolfe, as played by Colin Farrell and Christian Bale. All in all I'd skip this one and watch something like Dances with Wolves instead.
