The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996 film)

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The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Theatrical Poster by John Alvin1
Directed by Gary Trousdale
Kirk Wise
Produced by Don Hahn
Written by Victor Hugo (novel)
Starring Tom Hulce
Demi Moore
Tony Jay
Kevin Kline
Paul Kandel
Jason Alexander
Charles Kimbrough
Mary Wickes
David Ogden Stiers
Music by Alan Menken
Editing by Ellen Keneshea
Distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release date(s) June 21, 1996
Running time 87 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $70,000,0002
Gross revenue $325,500,000
Followed by The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (2002)
IMDb • Allmovie

The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1996 animated feature produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released to theaters on June 21, 1996 by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirty-fourth animated feature in the Disney animated features canon, the film is inspired by Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. While the basic structure remains, the film differs greatly from its source material. The plot centers on the Gypsy dancer, Esmeralda; Claude Frollo, a powerful and ruthless judge who lusts after her; Quasimodo, the protagonist, Notre Dame's kind-hearted but deformed bellringer, who adores her; and Phoebus, the chivalrous if irreverent military captain, who holds affections for her.

The film was directed by Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale, directors of Beauty and the Beast, and produced by Don Hahn, producer of Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. The songs for the musical film were composed by Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz, and the film featured the voices of Tom Hulce, Demi Moore, Kevin Kline, Paul Kandel, Jason Alexander, Charles Kimbrough, David Ogden Stiers, Tony Jay, and Mary Wickes (in her final film role). It belongs to the era known as Disney Renaissance. A direct-to-video sequel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame II, was released in 2002.

This film was rated G by the MPAA.

Contents

Plot

The movie opens in 1482 Paris with Clopin, a gypsy puppeteer, telling a group of children the story of the bellringer of Notre Dame ("The Bells of Notre Dame"): One night, four gypsies attempted to escape from Paris but were stopped by Judge Claude Frollo, the Minister of Justice. One gypsy woman who was carrying a bundle attempted to flee and Frollo pursued, thinking that she was carrying stolen goods. Chasing her to Notre Dame, Frollo snatches the bundle from her pushes her down the cathedral steps, and she dies after her head hits the stone steps. Frollo discovers that the bundle is a deformed baby and attempts to drown it in a well, but is stopped by the Archdeacon, who tells him to care for the child as repentance for killing an innocent woman. He agrees, on condition that the child will live in the cathedral. He names the baby Quasimodo, meaning "half-formed".

Twenty years later, Quasimodo is shown to be the bellringer of Notre Dame. Frollo tells Quasimodo to never leave the bell tower because the people in the city will mistreat him because of his ugliness. Frollo has also lies about Quasimodo's mother, saying that he took Quasimodo in when his mother abandoned him. Nevertheless, after Frollo departs following a visit, Quasimodo dreams of spending a day out in the world ("Out There"). Quasimodo's gargoyle friends (Hugo, Victor and Laverne) convince him to sneak out of the cathedral, given that it was the annual Feast of Fools and everyone is in costume.

Frollo and the new captain of the guard, Phoebus, arrive to oversee the festival as Quasimodo tries to keep himself from being seen ("Come One, Come All/Topsy Turvy Day"). When the time comes to crown the ugliest member of the crowd as the "King of Fools", Esmeralda drags Quasimodo onto the stage, thinking that his face is a mask. Quasimodo is crowned the King of Fools and is initially met with applause; however, the crowd turns on Quasimodo, tying him down to a wooden turntable and pelting him with produce. Phoebus asks permission to put a stop to it, but Frollo orders him to hold back. Esmeralda frees Quasimodo and Frollo orders her arrested for helping the hunchback. Esmeralda uses illusory tricks to disappear, and Frollo accuses her of witchcraft. She follows Quasimodo back to the cathedral disguised as an old man.

She is caught in the cathedral and Phoebus saves her by saying she claimed Sanctuary. The archdeacon then commands Frollo to leave out of respect for the church. Frollo leaves, warning Esmeralda that she will be arrested if she leaves the cathedral. Esmeralda, though thinking herself unworthy to offer a prayer, prays for God to protect her people and the other outcasts("God Help the Outcasts"). Quasimodo shows her the bell tower and becomes even more infatuated with her and helps her escape. Before she excapes, she gives him a necklace with a map of Paris, with points representing Notre Dame and the Court of Miracles, the gypsy hideout. With her on his mind, he returns to his desk and carves a new figurine in the shape of Esmeralda ("Heaven's Light"). Meanwhile, Frollo is disturbed by his own lust for Esmeralda and fears eternal damnation as a consequence ("Hellfire").

The next day, Frollo leads a search for gypsies, burning down houses and buildings. Phoebus eventually refuses to obey Frollo's orders and Frollo attempts to have him arrested. Phoebus steals Frollo's horse and escapes, but is shot with an arrow as he is crossing a bridge, causing him to fall into the river below. After Quasimodo is convinced by the gargoyles that Esmeralda is romantically interested in him ("A Guy Like You"), Esmeralda brings an injured Phoebus to the bell tower, and Quasimodo sees them kiss.

Frollo returns to the cathedral just as Esmeralda leaves, and Quasimodo hides Phoebus under a table. Frollo soon notices the figurine of Esmeralda, and realizes that Quasimodo was the one who helped her escape. Frollo then tells Quasimodo of his plans to attack the Court of Miracles "at dawn with a thousand men." After Frollo leaves, Phoebus and Quasimodo decide to work together to warn the gypsies. They manage to find the Court of Miracles by the necklace Esmeralda gave to Quasimodo, but upon arriving they are captured by Clopin and his men. Mistaking them for spies, the gypsies sentence them to death by hanging ("The Court of Miracles"). They are saved by Esmeralda, but Frollo and his soldiers arrive, revealing that Frollo had bluffed and had followed Quasimodo to the Court of Miracles.

The next day Frollo prepares to burn Esmeralda at the stake in front of the cathedral. Quasimodo is chained up in the bell tower, but his rage upon seeing Esmeralda about to be burned enables him to break free. He rescues Esmeralda and carries her back to the cathedral, where he claims sanctuary. Frollo orders his men to break into Notre Dame as Phoebus incites the crowd to revolt. Quasimodo also pours molten copper from above to drive the guards back, but Frollo manages to break into the cathedral, where he finds Quasimodo weeping over the unconscious Esmeralda. Frollo attempts to stab Quasimodo, but Quasimodo manages to seize the weapon and throw Frollo to the ground, but is distracted when Esmeralda wakes up. Frollo brandishes a sword, and chases them to the balconies.

During the chase, Frollo reveals that Quasimodo's mother had died trying to save his life. Quasimodo falls, but manages to pull Frollo down. Esmeralda catches hold of Quasimodo's arm as Quasimodo loses consciousness. Frollo scrambles atop one of the (inanimate) gargoyles and raises his sword in preparation to strike at Quasimodo and Esmeralda, but the gargoyle he is standing on begins to crumble, causing him to lose his footing and plummet to his death below.

Esmeralda loses her grip on Quasimodo, but he is caught by Phoebus on a balcony below. Quasimodo then shows his acceptance of Esmeralda and Phoebus's relationship. The couple then emerges from the cathedral, and Esmeralda leads Quasimodo out into the sunlight, where he is finally accepted by the citizens of Paris.

Production

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The Hunchback of Notre Dame was the second Disney film directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise after the hugely successful Beauty and the Beast in 1991. The duo had read Victor Hugo's novel and were eager to make an adaptation, but made several changes in order to make the storyline more suitable for children. This included making the film's heroes, Quasimodo, Esmeralda, and Phoebus, kinder than in the novel (Phoebus, in particular, was a licensious fop in the novel), adding three anthropomorphized stone gargoyles in the form of sidekicks, and keeping Quasimodo and Esmeralda alive at the end. The final product is a relatively equal blend of both comedy and drama, very much a contrast from the gothic novel.

The film's animators visited the actual cathedral at Notre Dame in Paris (Where the story is set) for a few weeks. They made and took hundreds of sketches and photos in order to stay fully faithful to the architecture and detail. Some in-jokes were incorporated into this; for example, the murals inside the cathedral are decorated with the names of the animators. Another example can be found when Phoebus and Quasimodo enter the grave leading to the Court of Miracles; the tombstone is inscribed with the names of the members of the Layout Department, and a caricature of Marec Fritzinger, Head of Layout Department, can be found on the coffin.citation needed

Several of the film's voice actors had been part of past projects Trousdale and Wise attended. For example, Tony Jay, the voice of Judge Claude Frollo, was selected based on his short role as Monsieur D'Arque in Beauty and the Beast. Also, Paul Kandel, the voice of Clopin, was chosen after the directors saw him playing the role of Uncle Ernie in the opera production of Tommy. Demi Moore was chosen for the role of Esmeralda based on her unusual voice, as the directors wanted a non-traditional voice for the film's leading lady.

Despite the changes from the original literary source material in order to ensure a G rating, the film does manage to address some rather mature themes; e.g. lust, infanticide, religious hypocrisy, the concept of Hell, prejudice, and social injustice. It presents many themes concerning very serious and deep aspects of Christianity that are thought to be very complex and difficult to understand, especially to young children. It is also the first animated Disney film to use the word "damn", although it is used only in the religious sense. In the DVD audio commentary, Wise, Trousdale, and Hahn note that the gargoyles might exist only in Quasimodo's imagination and thus may well be split-off pieces of his own identity. In one scene however, Esmeralda's goat Djali briefly sees the gargoyle Hugo come to life. Additionally, in the final battle, the gargoyles actually threw things at the soldiers below.

Cast and characters

  • Quasimodo (voiced by Tom Hulce) – The not-so-average hero with a heart of gold. He is the bellringer of the Notre Dame Cathedral. He is physically deformed with a hunched back and is constantly told by his guardian Judge Claude Frollo that he is an ugly monster who will never be accepted by the world outside. However, the opening song asks listeners to judge "who is the monster, and who is the man" of the two.
  • Esmeralda (voiced by Demi Moore, singing voice by Heidi Mollenhauer) – A beautiful, streetwise, talented, and always-barefoot gypsy girl who befriends Quasimodo and shows him that his soul is truly beautiful, even if his exterior isn't. She is incredibly independent and greatly dislikes the horrible ways in which gypsies are treated. Throughout the movie, Esmeralda attempts to seek justice for her people. She falls in love with Captain Phoebus and helps Quasimodo understand that gypsies are good people. 'Esmeralda' is actually Spanish and Portuguese for 'Emerald', which may be why the animators chose to give her emerald green eyes.
  • Judge Claude Frollo (voiced by Tony Jay) – A ruthless judge who is Quasimodo's reluctant guardian. He also lusts after Esmeralda. It should be noted that Frollo does not see any evil in his deeds as he does them in honour of his God.
  • Captain Phoebus (voiced by Kevin Kline) – A man who returns to Paris to be Captain of the Guard under Judge Frollo. He falls in love with (and later marries) Esmeralda. He is an idealist with integrity and does not approve of what Frollo thinks or does.
  • Clopin (voiced by Paul Kandel) – A mischievous gypsy who will defend his people at all costs.
  • Hugo, Victor, Laverne (voiced by Jason Alexander, Charles Kimbrough, and Mary Wickes*) – Three gargoyle statues who become Quasimodo's close friends and guardians.
*This was Mary Wickes's (Laverne) last film. She died of cancer before she finished all her lines (Jane Withers provided the remaining dialogue, and provided the voice for Laverne in The Hunchback of Notre Dame II).
  • The Archdeacon (voiced by David Ogden Stiers) – A kind man who helps many characters throughout the course of the movie, including Esmeralda. He is the opposite of Frollo: kind, accepting, gentle, and wise. He is the only figure in the film with authority over Frollo while he is inside Notre Dame.

Crew

Crew Position
Directed by Gary Trousdale
Kirk Wise
Produced by Don Hahn
Inspired by the novel by Victor Hugo
Original Story by Tab Murphy
Screenplay by Tab Murphy
Irene Mecchi
Bob Tzudiker
Noni White
Jonathan Roberts
Co-Producer Roy Conli
Songs by Alan Menken
Stephen Schwartz
Original Score by Alan Menken
Associate Producer Phillip Lofaro
Art Director David Goetz
Film Editor Ellen Keneshea
Artistic Supervisors Will Finn (Story supervisor)
Ed Ghertner (Layout supervisor)
Lisa Keene (Background supervisor)
Vera Lanpher-Pacheco (Clean-up supervisor)
Chris Jenkins (Effects supervisor)
Kiran Bhakta Joshi (Computer Graphics supervisor)
Artistic Coordinator Randy Fullmer
Supervising Animators James Baxter (Quasimodo)
Tony Fucile (Esmeralda)
Kathy Zielinski (Frollo)
Russ Edmonds (Phoebus)
Michael Surrey (Clopin)
David Pruiksma (Hugo/Victor)
Will Finn (Laverne)
Ron Husband (Djali)
David Burgess (Archdeacon)
Production Manager Patricia Hicks
Additional Screenplay Material by Will Finn

Reception

The Hunchback of Notre Dame opened on June 21, 1996 to overwhelmingly positive reviews, and was the highest critically acclaimed film of 1996. Some criticism, however, was provided by fans of Victor Hugo’s novel, who were very unhappy with the changes Disney made to the material. Critics such as Arnaud Later, a leading scholar on Hugo, accused Disney of simplifying, editing and censoring the novel in many aspects, including the personalities of the characters. In his review,3 Later wrote that the animators "don't have enough confidence in their own emotional feeling" and that the film "falls back on clichés." London's The Daily Mail called the Hunchback of Notre Dame "Disney's darkest picture, with a pervading atmosphere of racial tension, religious bigotry and mob hysteria" and "the best version yet of Hugo's novel, a cartoon masterpiece, and one of the great movie musicals". 4

In its opening weekend, the film opened in second place at the box office, grossing $21 million. The film saw small decline in later weeks and ultimately grossed just over $100 million domestically and over $325 million worldwide. Although the film could not out-gross its predecessors, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King and Pocahontas it nevertheless out-grossed other Disney films released within a decade of its premiere, such as The Little Mermaid, and Hercules.

Awards

  • BMI
    • BMI Film Music Award (Won)

The film currently stands with an 81% "fresh" rating at Rottentomatoes.com, with a 100% rating by established critics (the "Cream of the Crop").

Soundtrack

Main article: The Hunchback of Notre Dame: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack

Songs included in the movie

On Classic Disney: 60 Years of Musical Magic, this includes Out There on the green disc, A Guy Like You on the purple disc, and God Help the Outcasts on the orange disc. And on Disney's Greatest Hits, this also includes Out There on the blue disc, The Bells of Notre Dame on the green disc, and Topsy Turvy on the red disc. Celtic Woman member Chloë Agnew covered "Someday" for her Walking In The Air album.

Songs written for the film but not included

The special edition CAV laserdisc box set released concurrent with the original VHS and standard CLV laserdisc editions included storyboards and demos for several songs as bonus materials. Although some of those songs would make it to the final film, three were deleted:

  • "Someday" (Originally written to have been sung by Esmerelda to replace first choice of "God Help The Outcasts", but late in the production stages "Outcasts" was returned. Pop versions were recorded for the end credits by All-4-One for the US market and Eternal for overseas markets. It was later adapted for the stage musical in Berlin.)
  • "In a Place of Miracles"
  • "As Long As There's a Moon"

The storyboards and demos for "The Bells of Notre Dame", "Out There", and "Heaven's Light/Hellfire" were also included on the CAV laserdisc set. Only "Someday's" storyboards and demos have seen release on DVD so far, and only in region 2.

Differences between the novel and the film

Characters present in the novel, yet absent from the film

  • Gringoire: An impoverished poet and Esmeralda's husband by Gypsy law. In the novel, Esmeralda saves him from being hanged in the Court of Miracles.
  • Gudule: A reculsive woman and Esmeralda's birth mother. She is also Quasimodo's temporary adoptive mother before giving him away to Frollo.
  • Fleur-de-Lys: In the novel, Phoebus's young fiancee of noble descent.
  • Jehan: Frollo's younger brother, who is always begging Frollo for money. Jehan leads many hazings and causes most of the trouble during the festival. He is eventually killed mistakenly by Quasimodo in the revolt.

Characters present in the film, yet absent from the novel

  • The Archdeacon: A kind, caring man who gives guidance to several characters, especially Esmeralda. In the novel, Frollo is the Archdeacon, so this character didn't exist.
  • The three gargoyles: They serve as comic relief. However, they are mentioned in the novel as being personified to Quasimodo only. However, the humorous dialogue between Quasimodo and the gargoyles is absent in the novel. It is hinted in the commentary that, as in the novel, the presence of the gargoyles in the film may also be a figment of Quasimodo's imagination. In both the book and the film, their presence represents Quasimodo's loneliness.

Differences in depictions of characters present in both the novel and the film

  • Frollo: In the book, Frollo shows no interest in finding the Court of Miracles and the only act against gypsies he performed was requesting they stay away from Notre Dame to keep from distracting anyone's churchly duties. In the film, Frollo is a middle-aged man who appears cold and hating towards Quasimodo. In the novel, Frollo actually took in the orphaned Quasimodo by his own choice and was a good father. Frollo has no carriage and no such thing is ever mentioned in the book. In fact, most scenes were about him walking, running and once in a slow rowboat. In the novel, Frollo is a priest, in fact the Archdeacon of Notre Dame, while he is a judge in the film and the Archdeacon is a separate character. In the novel, Frollo does in fact want Esmeralda dead or 'his', like the movie depicts. He is described as being 36, bald with 'a broad forehead,' wearing a stole and alb over his cope.
  • Phoebus: In the novel, Phoebus is truthfully antagonistic and just as bad as the film version of Frollo. In the book, Phoebus is engaged to be married, and only lusts after Esmeralda (this does not stop him from arranging a meeting for them to have sex). He also is not a friend to the outcasts. In the end of the book, he helps drive them out of Paris, and wants nothing more to do with Esmeralda. In the film, Phoebus is a charming, likeable man who seems to hold a genuine love for Esmeralda, and sincerely wants to help the Gypsies, and attempts to help Quasimodo when he is being harassed.
  • Quasimodo: In the novel, Quasimodo hates all people, except for Frollo and Esmeralda. He uses his ugliness to scare people and his brute strength to attack them. He rarely speaks, and is also deaf (from ringing the bells), emotionally stunted, and prone to fits of anger. He has protruding teeth and is blind in one eye due to a wart over it. He kills Frollo and later weeps at the loss of everything that he has loved. In the movie, Quasimodo is a gentle, but still deformed person who cares for all people. He is perfectly healthy and has perfect hearing, full sight, and perfect fluency of English. He yearns to leave the bell tower and meet people. He fears Frollo, but still trusts him until the end of the movie.
  • Esmeralda: Esmeralda's personality has changed quite a bit from the book. In the movie, she is a clever, beautiful, talented gypsy with talent of disguise and illusion. She is fun-loving and truly cares for Quasimodo, especially when she helps him, and even kisses him on the cheek after he helps her escape. In the novel, she's not as kind to Quasimodo as quickly as she was in the movie, but she does slowly warm up to him. In the novel, she was hanged at the second attempt of her execution. She was saved in a similar fashion by Quasimodo, but later executed by the guards as Phoebus watched.
  • Clopin: In the movie, Clopin is portrayed as a clownish, fun-loving Master of the Revels and a lighthearted leader of the Gypsies. In the novel, Clopin is just the opposite. His humor in the novel is darker, and he isn't a jester, but rather, a father and serious protector of the outcasts, especially Esmeralda. He leads the revolt on his own, but is killed by musket fire. In the movie, he leads the ceremonies, but in the novel, he plays little role, other than disturbing a play. In the movie he nearly executes Phoebus and Quasimodo for entering the Court of Miracles, but in the novel, it is Gringoire who is saved by Esmeralda from hanging.

In the film, there is a happy ending; everyone except Frollo is alive, well, and happy (as most Disney movies have had). In the novel, only Phoebus, Fleur-de-Lys, Djali, and Gringoire are still alive at the end of the story (in the novel, Gringoire rescues Djali and "gained considerable success as a writer of tragedies." Phoebus "also came to a tragic end --- he married", presumably to Fleur-de-Lys.).

Plot Differences

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  • Frollo's stabbing of Phoebus is left out of the film, though he does attempt to execute him for refusing to burn down a Gypsy home.
  • Quasimodo and Phoebus never go into the Court of Miracles; in the novel Gringoire goes instead and is nearly hanged by Clopin.
  • In the novel, Quasimodo's mother abandons him as an infant. In the film, his mother was depicted as dying in an attempt to escape from Frollo. It has been speculated that Disney made this change because test audiences have shown children to be more accepting of a parent's death (a practical staple of Disney plots) than of a parent's abandonment/rejection.
  • King Louis XI is left out of the film. He is a minor character in the novel, appearing near the end to give permission for the church of Notre Dame to be broken into by the guards to arrest Esméralda.
  • Phoebus does not marry Esméralda; in the novel he marries Fleur de Lys (see above, for information on Fleur de Lys or see article about the novel.)
  • Quasimodo's attempted kidnapping of Esméralda on Frollo's orders is left out of the film.
  • Clopin is not the narrator of the novel - there is no narrator in the novel, the plot goes from the points of view of Frollo to Esméralda, Gringoire, Quasimodo, Phoebus, Fleur de Lys, and Jehan Frollo.
  • Frollo's attempted rape of Esméralda is left out of the movie. In the movie, he is driven mad by his lust for her, but he does not attempt to rape her. He does however, tell her she can choose him or 'the fire'; that is, he will burn her as a witch, but Quasimodo saves her.

Behind the scenes

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  • The names of the three gargoyles are Victor, Hugo, and Laverne, after Victor Hugo, author of the original novel, and one of the three Andrews Sisters, LaVerne.
  • While voice actors are rarely in the same recording room while filming their lines, Charles Kimbrough and Jason Alexander were together while recording "A Guy Like You." Mary Wickes, however, was not.
  • The speech Phoebus yells to rile the crowd near the end of the movie was originally supposed to be said by Clopin, but the directors thought a "rallying the troops" speech would be more appropriate for Phoebus.
  • There used to be a long scene that was cut where Frollo approaches Esmeralda in the dungeon. It was very similar to the scene in the book where Frollo and Esmeralda speak in the dungeon and he confesses his love for her, but the Disney team decided to move that action right to the stage where Esmeralda was going to be executed, for expediency and for drama.
  • Menken had to make radical adjustments during Hulce's recording of "Heaven's Light." Just prior, the directors had recorded Hulce screaming his lines from the "Sanctuary!" scene; when it came time to sing the song, Hulce's voice was hoarse from the extended session. With no time to rest due to approaching production deadlines and Hulce's other stage obligations, Menken divided the notes of the song into groups of limited ranges; Hulce sang these out-of-sequence to lessen the strain on his voice, and the recording was a success.citation needed
  • Directors Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise cast Tony Jay as Frollo because they loved his performance on Beauty and the Beast (1991 film) in which he played a character named Monsieur D'Arque.

Sequels and Spin offs

In 2002, the sequel The Hunchback of Notre Dame II was released on video and DVD. The plot focuses once again on Quasimodo as he continues to ring the bells now with the help of Zephyr, Esmeralda and Pheobus's son. He also meets and falls in love with a new girl named Madellaine who has come to Paris with her evil circus master, Sarousch. Disney felt it was appropriate to make the storyline for this film more fun and child friendly due to the dark and grim themes of the original.

Quasimodo, Esmerelda, Victor, Hugo, Laverne and Frollo make guest appearances on the Disney Channel series, House of Mouse. Frollo also can seen amongst a crowd of Disney Villains in Mickey's House of Villains.

Cultural references and uses

  • The film and soundtrack album feature the Goofy holler in which the soldiers fall after Quasimodo pulls the rope they were climbing.
  • Phoebus means sun-god in Greek text; not to be confused with Apollo.
  • When Quasimodo helps Esmeralda and Djali escape the cathedral, gargoyles of Goofy and Donald Duck can be seen on the building.
  • A popular rumor states that, during the final battle, shapes on the cathedral are Mickey Mouse patterns and that a stone gargoyle of Pumbaa can be seen as well. Both of these rumors are false; they are part of the actual architecture.
  • In the song "Out There", Belle from Beauty and the Beast, the Magic Carpet from Aladdin and Pumbaa from The Lion King can all be seen when the camera zooms in on the citizens of Paris.5
  • During the siege on Notre Dame, there is a scene where LaVerne commands a flock of pigeons to fly into Frollo's soldiers, saying "Fly, my pretties, fly!", just as The Wicked Witch of the West did to her flying monkey minions in The Wizard of Oz. She even makes the same arm motions the Witch did, and the background music is also the same.
  • Fragments from many traditional Catholic liturgical pieces appear in the score, notably the Dies Irae (The Bells of Notre Dame, Paris Burning, Sanctuary!), the Confiteor (Anything But Lonely), and the Agnus Dei, or Lamb of God (Humiliation). The Kyrie also appears several times; it is Greek, rather than Latin.
  • Phoebus's horse in the movie is named Achilles ( a reference to the Greek mythological character). When being guided to the palace of justice by lieutenants at the beginning of the film he calls out "Achilles, heel!" (beckoning the animal to his side).
  • The two male gargoyles are called Victor and Hugo, which is a reference to the writer of the original novel, Victor Hugo.

Adaptations

Disney Comic Hits #11, published by Marvel Comics, features two stories based upon the film.

Disney MGM Studios at one point of time had a stage show based on the film.6

German Musical

The film was adapted into a darker, more Gothic musical production, re-written and directed by James Lapine and produced by the Disney theatrical branch, in Berlin, Germany. The musical Der Glöckner von Notre Dame (translated in English as The Bellringer of Notre Dame) was very successful and played from 1999 to 2002, before closing. A cast recording was also recorded in German. There has been discussion of an American revival of the musical. Lyricist Don Black and Charles Hart has stated that "I think we're starting up Hunchback of Notre Dame, hopefully, next year. Rumor has reached my ear that it's happening."7

Credits

Voice cast

Actor Role
Tom Hulce Quasimodo
Demi Moore Esmeralda
Tony Jay Judge Claude Frollo
Kevin Kline Captain Phoebus
Paul Kandel Clopin
Jason Alexander Hugo
Charles Kimbrough Victor
Mary Wickes* Laverne
David Ogden Stiers The Archdeacon
Mary Kay Bergman Quasimodo's mother

Singing voices

Actor Role
Heidi Mollenhauer Esmeralda
  • *Died before the film was released.

References

  1. ^ Stewart, Jocelyn (2008-02-10). "John Alvin, 59; created movie posters for such films as 'Blazing Saddles' and 'E.T.'", Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 10 February 2008. 
  2. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116583/business
  3. ^ Laster, Arnaud. "Waiting for Hugo". www.awn.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-19.
  4. ^ "I've Got a Hunch That This Is a New Disney Masterpiece." The Daily Mail (London, England) 12 July 1996: 44.
  5. ^ Urban Legends Reference Pages: Hunchback of Notre Dame Belle's Cameo Snopes.com . Retrieved April 10, 2008
  6. ^ Disney MGM Studios, Florida, theme park guide map, 1996
  7. ^ Playbill.com Interview

External links

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Disney theatrical animated features
Official canon
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) • Pinocchio (1940) • Fantasia (1940) • Dumbo (1941) • Bambi (1942) • Saludos Amigos (1942) • The Three Caballeros (1944) • Make Mine Music (1946) • Fun and Fancy Free (1947) • Melody Time (1948) • The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) • Cinderella (1950) • Alice in Wonderland (1951) • Peter Pan (1953) • Lady and the Tramp (1955) • Sleeping Beauty (1959) • One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961) • The Sword in the Stone (1963) • The Jungle Book (1967) • The Aristocats (1970) • Robin Hood (1973) • The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977) • The Rescuers (1977) • The Fox and the Hound (1981) • The Black Cauldron (1985) • The Great Mouse Detective (1986) • Oliver & Company (1988) • The Little Mermaid (1989) • The Rescuers Down Under (1990) • Beauty and the Beast (1991) • Aladdin (1992) • The Lion King (1994) • Pocahontas (1995) • The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) • Hercules (1997) • Mulan (1998) • Tarzan (1999) • Fantasia 2000 (1999) • Dinosaur (2000) • The Emperor's New Groove (2000) • Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) • Lilo & Stitch (2002) • Treasure Planet (2002) • Brother Bear (2003) • Home on the Range (2004) • Chicken Little (2005) • Meet the Robinsons (2007) • Bolt (2008) • The Princess and the Frog (2009) • Rapunzel (2010) • King of the Elves (2012)
Live-action films
with animation
The Reluctant Dragon (1941) • Victory Through Air Power (1943) • Song of the South (1946) • So Dear to My Heart (1949) • Mary Poppins (1964) • Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971) • Pete's Dragon (1977) • Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) • Enchanted (2007)
DisneyToon
features
Other
See also
v • d • e
The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
Characters
Films
Other Adaptations

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  • This page was last modified on 6 January 2009, at 13:47.

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