The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996 film)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 68.174.173.93 (talk) at 04:25, 30 July 2008 (→‎Characters present in the film, yet absent from the novel). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame
File:Hunchbackposter.jpg
Theatrical Poster by John Alvin[1]
Directed byGary Trousdale
Kirk Wise
Written byVictor Hugo (novel)
Produced byDon Hahn
StarringTom Hulce
Demi Moore
Tony Jay
Kevin Kline
Paul Kandel
Jason Alexander
Charles Kimbrough
Mary Wickes
David Ogden Stiers
Edited byEllen Keneshea
Music byAlan Menken
Distributed byBuena Vista Pictures Distribution
Release dates
June 21, 1996
Running time
87 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$100,000,000
Box office$325,500,000

The Hunchback of Notre Dame (also known as The Bells of Notre Dame and The Bellringer of Notre Dame in some countries) 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 teenaged barefoot 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.

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, 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, the filmmakers 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. Plus, in the battle, the gargoyles actually threw things at the soldiers below.

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 and Mary Wickes (in her final film role) and Tony Jay. It belongs to the era known as Disney Renaissance. A direct-to-video sequel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame II, was released in 2002.

Plot

The movie opens in 1482 Paris with Clopin, a gypsy puppeteer, telling a group of children the story about the bellringer of Notre Dame ("The Bells of Notre Dame"): One night long ago, four Gypsies tried to enter Notre Dame but were stopped by Judge Claude Frollo, the Minister of Justice. One gypsy woman, carrying a bundle, attempted to flee, and Frollo pursued, thinking the bundle was stolen goods. Frollo snatches the bundle from the woman and she falls backwards onto the cathedral stairs and dies of a blow to the head. Frollo then finds that the bundle is a deformed baby, and attempts to drown it in a well, believing it to be an unholy demon. He is stopped by the Archdeacon, who tells him to care for the child to save his own soul from going to the underworld for killing an innocent woman. He reluctantly agrees, on condition that the child can live in the cathedral, and he names the baby Quasimodo, meaning "half-formed".

Twenty years later, Quasimodo has grown up. He is the bellringer of Notre Dame. Frollo insists that Quasimodo never leave the bell tower because all the people in the city are cruel and horrible and will mistreat him due to his ugliness. Frollo then lies about Quasimodo's mother, telling him that his mother abandoned him on the church steps and that he kindly took Quasimodo in, but nevertheless, after Frollo departs, Quasimodo still dreams of spending a day out in the world ("Out There"). Quasimodo's gargoyle friends (Hugo, Victor and Laverne) convince him that this one day, the annual Feast of Fools, is the only day he can experience the world outside, given that everyone is in costumes.

Meanwhile, Frollo and the new captain of the guard, Phoebus, arrive to oversee the festival as Quasimodo tries to keep himself from being seen. The main attraction of the festivities is Esmeralda. When the time comes to crown the ugliest member of the crowd as the "king of fools," Quasimodo is dragged onto the stage by Esmeralda, who thinks his face is a "great mask!". Quasimodo is crowned the king of fools and is initially met with great applause; however, the crowd soon turns on Quasimodo, tying him down to a wooden wheel and pelting him with tomatoes, eggs, cabbages and other kinds of food. Phoebus tries to end it, but is ordered back by Frollo who lets the torment continue, determined to teach Quasimodo a lesson. Esmeralda helps Quasimodo down and Frollo orders her arrested for helping the hunchback. Esmeralda uses stagecraft to disappear, and she is accused of witchcraft. She follows a humiliated Quasimodo while in disguise.

She is caught in the Cathedral and Phoebus saves her by saying she claimed Sanctuary and the law cannot touch her. The archdeacon then commands Frollo to leave in respect for the church. Frollo reluctantly leaves, warning Esmeralda that if she leaves, she will be arrested. Esmeralda sees candles being lit for prayer and, though she thinks herself unworthy to address the Virgin Mary, hesitantly prays to her that God protect the outcasts of world ("God Help the Outcasts"). Quasimodo shows her the bell tower and becomes even more infatuated by her kindness and helps her escape. With her on his mind, he returns to his desk and carves a new little figurine in the shape of Esmeralda, believing she's like an "angel". ("Heaven's Light")

Meanwhile, Frollo is disturbed by his own lust for Esmeralda and fears eternal damnation as a consequence ("Hellfire"). So the next day, Frollo leads a search for gypsies, burning down houses and buildings. Finally Phoebus refuses and Frollo orders him attacked. Frollo is distracted by Esmeralda causing his horse to throw him off and Phoebus falls into a river and is rescued by Esmeralda. 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 to be safe and Quasimodo, heartbroken, watches them kiss.

Later that night, Phoebus and Quasimodo try to find the gypsy Court of Miracles to warn the gypsies of Frollo's supposed impending attack, Frollo having lied to Quasimodo and told him that he had discovered the gypsies' location and would attack at dawn with a thousand men. They use a map necklace given to Quasimodo by Esmeralda, but they are bound, gagged, and captured by Clopin and his men, who, mistaking them for spies, sentence them to death by hanging ("The Court of Miracles"). They are saved by Esmeralda, but Frollo and many soldiers arrive and arrest the crowd, having followed Quasimodo.

The next day Frollo is preparing to burn Esmeralda at the stake in front of the cathedral. Quasimodo is chained up in the bell tower, but when he sees Frollo light the straw under her feet ablaze, he breaks free and rescues Esmeralda by swinging downwards into the crowd and back to the cathedral, claiming sanctuary in the middle of the balcony. Phoebus, the gargoyles, Clopin, the towns people, and the arrested gypsies incite a revolt against Frollo and the guards. Quasimodo also pours molten copper (for crafting bells) from above to scare the guards away, but Frollo manages to break into the cathedral, where he finds Quasimodo weeping over the unconscious Esmeralda. Frollo seizes the opportunity to stab Quasimodo in the back, supposedly to end his suffering. Noting the shadow of Frollo looming over him, Quasimodo seizes the weapon and runs off with the barefoot gypsy girl.

Quasimodo escapes with Esmeralda to hide underneath the balconies, but Frollo soon catches them and nearly manages to attack them with a sword. He reveals to Quasimodo his mother really died trying to save him, and Frollo plans to carry out his original intentions and kill Quasimodo. Quasimodo falls, but Esmeralda catches hold of his arm. While she is holding Quasimodo, Frollo climbs atop the stone projection (an inanimate 'gargoyle', in the proper architectural sense) and raises his sword high above his head, determined to send them both into oblivion. Suddenly, the gargoyle begins to break off from the ledge, causing Frollo to lose his footing and grab the statue, which suddenly comes to life and snarls at him. The statue finally breaks free, taking a screaming Frollo with it, down to his fiery death and eternal punishment in underworld. Esmeralda loses her grip on Quasimodo, but as he is falling from the cathedral he is caught by Phoebus on a balcony below, and there the three are reunited. Quasimodo then "gives his blessing" to Esmeralda and Phoebus's relationship, and they return to the crowd outside and Quasimodo is now accepted into the crowd as a normal man.

Production

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 villain in the novel), adding three anthropomorphized stone gargoyles in the form of sidekicks, and keeping Quasimodo and Esmeralda alive at the end.

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 sighted from 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.

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 a monster who will never be accepted. 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 streetwise, beautiful, 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 greatly dislikes the horrible ways in which gypsies are treated and throughout the movie attempts to seek justice for her people. She falls in love with Captain Phoebus. 'Esmeralda' is actually Spanish for 'Emerald'.
  • Judge Claude Frollo (voiced by Tony Jay) – A ruthless and corrupt judge who is Quasimodo's reluctant guardian who also lusts after Esmeralda.
  • 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 Esmeralda. He is an idealist with integrity and does not approve 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.

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 Laster, 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,[2] Laster wrote that the animators "don't have enough confidence in their own emotional feeling" and that the film "falls back on clichés."

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 Film Music Award (Won)
  • Worst Written Film Grossing Over $100 Million (Nominated, lost to Twister). It marks the second animated feature to be nominated for a Razzie award since Thumbelina (1994 film).

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.

Soundtrack songs not in the film

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" (to have been sung by Esmerelda - later replaced with "God Help the Outcasts". Pop versions were recorded for the end credits by All-4-One for the US market and Eternal for overseas markets.
  • "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. Of course, this isn't really explored and no bits of humorous dialogue emerge from interchanges between Quasimodo and the gargoyles like they do in the film. Their presence serves the singular purpose of proving 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 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. 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.
  • 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.

Plot Differences

  • Frollo's stabbing of Phoebus is left out of the film.
  • Quasimodo and Phoebus never go into the court of miracles; in the novel Gringoire goes instead and is nearly hanged by Clopin.
  • Frollo does not kill Quasimodo's mother in the novel. In the film he does.
  • 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 is left out of the film; in the novel he tries to kidnap her (on Frollo's orders)
  • It is never mentioned in the film that Quasimodo loves the bells of Notre Dame; in the novel he loves all the bells (even the ones that made him deaf (the three Marys) ).
  • 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, Gringore, Quasimodo, Phoebus, Fleur de Lys, Jeahn Frollo
  • Frollo's attempted rape of Esméralda is left out of the movie. In the novel, when he is driven mad by his lust for her he tries to rape her, but Quasimodo saves her.

Behind the scenes

  • 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 sadly, 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]

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.

As of June 23, 2008, a "Disney Crossover" fan made short of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" has been broadcasting via YouTube, in honor of the film's last climax, in which Quasimodo (with the assistance of various Disney Characters) saves Esmeralda and Notre Dame.

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJst_FboTCI

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixcnYWVMrqA&feature=related

Part 3 (Credit to all of the artists who produced the film):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixcnYWVMrqA&feature=related

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.[3]
  • 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 (Hellfire), 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.[4]

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 Stephen Schwartz 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."[5]

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,Jane Withers Laverne
David Ogden Stiers The Archdeacon
Mary Kay Bergman Quasimodo's mother

Singing voices

Actor Role
Heidi Mollenhauer Esmeralda

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 2008-02-10.
  2. ^ Laster, Arnaud. "Waiting for Hugo". www.awn.com. Retrieved 2007-08-19.
  3. ^ Urban Legends Reference Pages: Hunchback of Notre Dame Belle's Cameo Snopes.com . Retrieved April 10, 2008
  4. ^ Disney MGM Studios, Florida, theme park guide map, 1996
  5. ^ Playbill.com Interview

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Hunchback_of_Notre_Dame_(1996_film)&oldid=228745532"