(Re)discover “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame”, 34th animated classic from Disney studios which masterfully revisits the famous novel by Victor Hugo.
In 1482, in the middle of the Parisian city, and at the foot of the monumental walls of Notre-Dame Cathedral, a gypsy puppeteer named Clopin asked a few children to tell them the story of the mysterious bell ringer, who remains all up there and that no one has ever seen.
He then explains to them that about twenty years earlier, a group of gypsies had found themselves confronted by the terrible judge Claude Frollo when they landed on the banks of the Seine. Accidentally killing one of the gypsies while chasing her, the vile character had then been forced to raise her baby himself, who had a malformation. To prevent anyone from setting eyes on him, the magistrate had then forced the child to remain at the top of the cathedral, and never to come down.
As the years passed, Quasimodo always obeyed his master’s injunctions, but while observing from afar the joyful existence of the people below, his heart often pushed him to leave his sanctuary.
In the middle of a golden age…
We can never say it enough: the 90s undoubtedly represent one of the most prosperous and prosperous periods in Disney history. Between The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King, the enchanted studios, driven by new inspiration, have managed to produce a series of commercial triumphs, but also major films.
Based on Victor Hugo’s famous novel, set in 15th-century medieval France, The Hunchback of Notre Dame undoubtedly falls into both categories. Boasting an ambitious storyline and powerful characters, the studio’s 34th animated classic is quite possibly one of the richest, most adult, and most accomplished films in Disney history.
Walt Disney Animation Studios
…an ingot!
Entrusted to the directors of Beauty and the Beast, the film does not hesitate to address its young audience seriously and to tackle such delicate themes as ostracization, disability, jealousy or persecution, taking the gamble that it can address children as well as future adults, but without ever falling into the macabre.
Better yet, The Hunchback of Notre Dame uses each of these seemingly risky elements as pedestals to climb to the top. In this, it manages to preserve (and sometimes even sublimate) the traditional magic of the Disney studios to become one of the studio’s most majestic feature films, right from its masterful introductory sequence.
Obviously, it’s impossible not to mention the extraordinary soundtrack by an ever-inspired Alan Menken, and the quality of the animation, which wonderfully integrates the digital prowess of Pixar artists with the famous sensitivity of Disney artisans. The result: one of the most beautiful feature films from the enchanted studio, quite simply.
Walt Disney Animation Studios
What they will like…
- The unforgettable songs from the film. Special mentions for the poignant Just one dayfor the overwhelming The Banished Have the Right to Love and for the trainer Charivari.
- The secondary characters, and in particular the friendly gargoyles who keep Quasimodo company at the top of his tower.
What might worry them…
- The film’s villain, Claude Frollo, masterfully played by Jean Piat (who also voiced Scar) in the French version, and whose motivations may raise some complicated questions for younger viewers, his hatred for Esmeralda rivaling his desire for the gypsy.
- The shocking sequence in which Quasimodo finds himself tied up in a public square and humiliated by the inhabitants of Paris.
(Re)discover all the hidden details of the “Hunchback of Notre-Dame”…
