For this column, we’re covering what we consider the two most vital films we’re missing. We could have covered Die Hard With A Vengeance, Congo, or The Bridges of Madison County, but those don’t feel half as vital as these films. These two films were as big as it came in 1995. Two big hits then, but are they still now?

Austin’s Take:
Pocahontas:
I really have to put my personal feelings aside in evaluating this one. I didn’t see this one until video, the first such Disney film for me. Once I did see it, I wasn’t a fan and I’m still not. But that doesn’t matter because Just Around the Riverbend and Colors of the Wind remain iconic songs and the film itself continues to hold a vital place in the hearts of many. It’s not the hard 10 of The Lion King but this is still a really beloved film. It’s not to my taste, but it had legs.
Rating: 8

Batman Forever
This one is funny. At one point, I might have scored it higher. In 1995 it was a monster after all. Honestly, without Batman and Robin and the glory of Nolan, I think this would still be a really well liked film. A cartoonish, ridiculous, hyper 90s Batman film with some damn decent work here and there, this really is pretty fun. But, those two versions did come along and it is impossible not to watch this seeing the things to come. The backlash that came was pretty brutal. All the same, I’ve seen tributes and the 20th anniversary wasn’t ignored. This one’s hell to place. Ultimately, it’s so very 90s, so emblematic of its moment to the point only one film was more so. The factor is high even if the fondness isn’t.
Rating: 8

Albert’s Take:

For this NOstalgia, I’m looking at two movies I’ve only seen once and barely remember; Batman Forever and Pocahontas.
Batman Forever, you’ll recognize, is the first of the Joel Schumacher Batman films, and one film before the franchise crashed into a full neon roadblock. I didn’t see it until well into my high school years (around 2004), so I can only speak to what I remember about the release. It was ’95, the magic point in Jim Carrey’s career. By this point he’d made The Mask, Ace Ventura, and Dumb and Dumber, all one year before. I remember hearing that Carrey would play The Riddler in the new Batman movie and not knowing what to think (even at that young age, I was well aware that Carrey could… overdo it). If I heard that rumor now, I would fully endorse it; his over-the-top antics would seemingly match the character. From what I remember of the film, he did about as well as expected.
The other big staple of Forever was Batman’s actor change from Michael Keaton to Val Kilmer. I don’t remember it being too much of an uproar, but a couple years later would see a better candidate for Batman. For more details on our thoughts on Batman and Robin, I refer you to our “Summer of ’97” episode.
As to what I actually remember of the film? Ehhhhhhhhh, okay. The theme song is awful. Not even Weird Al could save it.
Pocahontas I remember even less of, so this section will be shorter. It has the distinction of being at what most consider the tail end of the early 90’s Disney Renaissance, and some say it killed it. I’m going to be a little less harsh on it, because though I’ve never felt a need to revisit, it’s not that bad. Historically inaccurate? Definitely. Not bad? Also definitely. Also, despite its lesser-liked status, the movie has surprisingly endured, far past the memory of (ironically) Batman Forever. Everyone remembers the “Colors of the Wind” song, and lately the fact that Pocahontas is one of the first Disney Princesses to be a Person of Color AND the bonus that she’s voiced by Irene Bedard, an Alaskan Native who is actually a Person of Color! So for everything Pocahontas did wrong, it did a lot right. While not as strong as some other 90’s Disney entries, it deserves its place as part of that movement.
NOstalgia ratings (Based on popular memory):
Batman Forever – 5 Stars
Pocahontas – 7 Stars
Final Ratings:
Batman Forever: 6.5
Pocahontas: 7.5