
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, July 4, 1995                   TAG: 9507060021
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-6   EDITION: HOLIDAY 
SOURCE: DARLENE HAYES STRILECKIS
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

MORE THAN JUST ANOTHER PRETTY FACE

ON JUNE 25, my husband and I took our 2 1/2-year-old son to a movie theater for the first time. We saw Disney's new flick, ``Pocahontas.'' Being the major film buffs that we are, we were ecstatic to have him there between us, devouring our bag of popcorn. It was a sort of a magical moment.

As I sat there taking it all in, I felt indebted to Disney - obliged that such quality and meaning exists in film for young children. Disney films have this mystique, this innate beauty that seizes our souls and offers us a glimpse into what, perhaps, life is all about. Your staff writer, Katherine Reed, called it the ``mystical power of love,'' though she didn't seem to embrace it (June 24 Extra section, ```Pocahontas' true to Disney formula'').

Disney embraces it. Cinderella, at her darkest hour, was claiming, ``There's nothing to believe in,'' when who should appear but her fairy godmother. I've been there - we've all been there. And who could forget the courage of Bambi when his father told him, ``Bambi, your mother cannot be with you anymore.'' Talk about needing a box of tissues!

``Cinderella,'' ``The Little Mermaid,'' ``Beauty and the Beast'' - these stories hold magnificent truths. So the main characters are almost always beautiful - so what! Since when is it a crime to be beautiful? Are we to judge Ariel because she wore a skimpy little top (what's mermaid garb supposed to look like anyway?) or any of these women because they happen to be physically fit?

Why is it that in our feminist club, we still judge each other? In a truly empowered state of sisterhood, this wouldn't exist. Some of us have physical beauty, some have vast intelligence, some are nurturers, but we are all one. We live and breathe the same air, we share the same passions and dreams, we have endured the same struggles, and we continue to do so.

As for the folks at Disney, they like beautiful women. Beautiful characters are pleasing to look at, much like beautiful artwork or photography. They like beautiful men, too, you know. Prince Charming is hardly characteristic of the average man.

But beauty isn't the theme here. Look beyond the beautiful characters, beyond the brilliant animation and past the stunning cinematography - here is where the real meaning lies. It isn't in Pocahontas' ``big bust, tiny waist, or sloe eyes.'' Nor is it in her ``sensual, undulating hair.'' The real meaning is in her heart, her mind, her soul.

Perhaps the Disney people erred in basing their new story upon a historical figure, but it's a story that captures the spirit of humanity, that harmonizes two very different cultures, and remembers the ``mystical power of love.'' It came from the union of well-meaning minds, and I think it deserves praise.

Disney tells a story of a woman who knew to listen to her own voice. She allowed that voice, not her man, to determine her destiny. She had a passion and fervor that permeated the world around her. And she was beautiful. So be it.

Darlene Hayes Strileckis, of Roanoke, is planning to attend Hollins College in the fall to further her studies in philosophy.

by CNB