BACKGROUND
Probably the most forgotten and most under-appreciated animated musical film to be released within the Disney Renaissance Era is The Hunchback of Notre Dame, released in 1996, towards the end of this era when the hype of The Lion King (1994) had failed to materialise for any other animated release to come afterwards.
In the 2020s, thanks to the release of most of Disney’s film catalogue on Disney+, many Disney fans are now finding or re-discovering some of those movies from their childhood, with The Hunchback of Notre Dame being one of those that is now discussed more than it ever used to be. Today, it’s everyone’s long-lost favourite, which is fair enough, but I am one of those few people that has loved this film for years, and never had anyone to talk about it with for a very long time, as none of my school friends had seen it since they were little and had no desire to watch it ever again. Although whilst at university, I somehow managed to convince my friendship groups to watch The Hunchback of Notre Dame, sometimes its sequel as well, though what they thought of it, I am not sure.
I’m a huge fan of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I have watched this film over a hundred times in my life; I can practically recite it. I’m sure many people are thinking “that must be an over-exaggeration”, but I have confirmed with family and friends that this is actually true, though I have no idea of the exact number of times I’ve watched it. I remember I was probably eight years old when I started to obsessively watch our VHS tape; my sister would be at some after-school club, so I would just sit and watch this film. This may have had something to do with having seen The Hunchback of Notre Dame show at Disney-MGM Studios, but I can’t remember exactly why I chose this film out of all others. Granted, I haven’t liked the movie since its release date, but give me a break, I was only three years old then. It wasn’t too long afterwards though. I don’t know how long I did this for, but it was a weekly thing for quite a while. I also have made sure that I watch it every year on 6th January, “Topsy Turvy Day”, ever since then. I have never pretended to be “too cool” for Disney, despite the teasing from some people I’ve met, and I have made no secret of my love for this film, my favourite film of all time, not just my favourite Disney film.
PLOT
But enough about me. Let’s get to the film. The Hunchback of Notre Dame begins with a dark screen, where only the sound of choristers and bells can be heard. Suddenly, the bells chime louder and we move into the clouds, seeing the upper portion of Notre-Dame Cathedral, before descending through the clouds and down to the streets of Paris. In one of the city’s squares, Clopin, a jester and puppeteer, tells a group of children all about the mysterious bellringer of Notre-Dame. But don’t get too attached to this scene, because we never come back it. Instead, Clopin takes us back in time to see Quasimodo’s mother and two Romani men trying to escape from Paris. Quasimodo’s mother has her baby in her arms, when Judge Claude Frollo, a well-known enemy of the Romani people, halts their journey and arrests them. He orders that the baby be forcibly taken, falsely believing it to be a bundle of stolen goods, but the mother runs. She finally ends up outside Notre-Dame Cathedral, but despite claiming “sanctuary”, is unable to enter, and Frollo catches up with her, pulling the baby from her arms and pushing her down the cathedral steps, killing her instantly. Frollo sees that the “stolen goods” are in fact a baby, but a deformed one and goes to throw him down the well. He is stopped by the Archdeacon, who tells Frollo that the “eyes of Notre-Dame” have witnessed these events and that Frollo, a holy man, has sinned in his actions that evening. Frollo asks the Archdeacon how he can repent. He is told to care for and raise the child as his own. Frollo agrees, believing the child may be useful to him at a later date, and asks that the child reside in the bell tower of Notre-Dame Cathedral. We then reunite with Clopin who speaks directly to us, saying that as we watch the story unfold, we should consider this question: who is the monster, and who is the man?
Back in “present day”, I guess, Quasimodo is now 20 years old and has been the bellringer for the cathedral all his life, living in the bell tower. Quasimodo is a very sensitive, caring person, who encourages a small bird who has been nesting in a gargoyle’s mouth to fly and join his flock, because he doesn’t want to see anyone or anything cooped up in the cathedral like he has been. Although alone in the bell tower, Quasimodo has three “friends”, gargoyles named Hugo, Victor, and Laverne; they come to life occasionally to speak to Quasi and give him advice. On this particular day, they try to convince him to go and see the city’s festival, the Festival of Fools, in person for the first time, rather than just watching from above with them like he normally does. Quasi is scared that everyone will think he is a monster because of his unusual appearance, this being something that his master, Frollo, has convinced him of. Eventually, Quasi believes he can do it, until Frollo arrives, to deliver his next lesson and some food. Quasimodo lets slip that he is planning to go to the festival today, at which point, Frollo is horrified, telling Quasimodo that he is his only friend and confidante, the only one who can stand to look at him. Quasimodo apologises, but still wishes that just for one day he could be like everyone else, and decides he’ll go anyway.
In the city, a man, Phoebus, arrives in Paris. He sees a beautiful young woman dancing in the streets for coins with her goat. He is curious and interested in her, but soon sees two guards come over to the woman, accusing her of stealing. She manages to get away, in part thanks to Phoebus who blocks the guards’ way with his horse, Achilles. The guards quickly realise Phoebus is the new Captain of the Guard and take him to the Palace of Justice to meet with Frollo. Frollo tells Phoebus, who was summoned from the war for this position, that his job is going to involve helping to eradicate the Romani people and other “undesirables” from Paris, this being Frollo’s ultimate goal. Phoebus does not agree with this plan, but their conversation is halted by the start of the Feast of Fools, something Frollo must attend, though he hates having to mix with the commoners of Paris.
At the festival, Quasimodo has indeed attended, albeit wearing a large cape to disguise himself. The festival is full of colour, dancing, and singing, with a huge crowd, but Quasimodo is careful to make sure Frollo does not see him, and that nobody else is terrified by his “monstrous appearance”. Unfortunately, Quasi stumbles into a tent, which turns out to be that young woman, Esmeralda’s dressing room, and he walks in on her. She is surprised, but concerned for Quasi’s welfare, checking he is ok. As she tells him to be a little bit more careful, she tells him “great mask”. Quasi, not understanding this comment but thinking it to be a compliment, is thrilled; he thinks Esmeralda is wonderful. Later in the festivities, Esmeralda dances for the crowd, even going so far as to sit on Frollo’s lap, to mock him as she knows his stance on her and her people. Then, the competition to crown the King of Fools begins, where the winner is the ugliest person in Paris. Men wearing masks are pulled up on stage and reveal their true faces one-by-one. They just aren’t ugly enough, but then Esmeralda pulls Quasimodo up on stage and tries to pull his mask off – except it isn’t a mask at all. The crowd are horrified, but Clopin informs the crowd they shouldn’t panic as they were looking for the ugliest face in all of Paris and here he is! Quasimodo is crowned the King of Fools and paraded through the streets, in front of his new adoring fans.
This all looks to be going well, however, for one thing, Frollo has now noticed that Quasimodo disobeyed his orders by coming here, and secondly, guards start to pelt Quasimodo with tomatoes, leading to the crowd joining in, and throwing ropes over him, like he’s some kind of animal, tying him to the breaking wheel, a medieval torture device. They spin it madly, whilst eggs and more fruit are thrown in his face. Phoebus asks Frollo to give him permission to stop it, but Frollo tells Phoebus “a lesson needs to be learnt here”. Luckily, Esmeralda isn’t afraid to take a stand and simply walks up to the platform and over to Quasimodo. She wipes his face gently and apologises for the crowd’s behaviour. Frollo orders Esmeralda to get down but she refuses, telling him he shouldn’t allow people to be treated this way and throws Quasimodo’s crown at him, telling him he’s the only fool around here. Naturally, Frollo orders his guards to arrest her, but Esmeralda is too quick and smart for that and manages to outrun them, disappearing without a trace. Frollo assumes she must be a witch, giving him even more reason to track her down. Frollo then watches with disdain as Quasimodo makes his way back to the cathedral, clearly humiliated and saddened.
Esmeralda makes her way to the cathedral as well with her goat, Djali. Phoebus follows her inside, thinking her disguise of an old beggar is suspicious. He doesn’t intend to harm her or hand her over; he just likes her. The two flirt a bit and engage in hand-to-hand combat, because the two can totally co-exist, right? Phoebus asks Esmeralda for her name, and Phoebus tells her his to show he is not a threat. Frollo then enters the cathedral and tells Phoebus to arrest her. Esmeralda thinks this was all a trick, but Phoebus tells Frollo she claimed sanctuary and he can do nothing. Just as Frollo is about to drag Esmeralda outside so they can arrest her, the Archdeacon arrives and escorts Frollo, Phoebus and the guards out – except Frollo has hidden behind a pillar, and holds Esmeralda’s arm behind her back, so he can warn her that he will win, no matter how long he has to wait. He then strangely sniffs her hair, which Esmeralda rightly interprets as perversion and pushes him off her. Frollo tells her she is a witch, twisting everything to be seen as unholy. He then leaves.
A guard is posted at every door of the cathedral so Esmeralda is trapped inside. The Archdeacon tells Esmeralda that she “cannot right all the wrongs of this world by herself”. She laments how badly minorities are treated by others, her people included, despite everyone being human and more similar than different. Quasimodo comes down to see her, as he is appreciative of her actions that afternoon, but he is soon spotted by others and runs away in fear. Esmeralda follows him to the bell tower, and sees his crafted miniature version of Paris and its residents, who he has spent his whole life watching. Esmeralda is amazed by his talents and tells him he is a surprising person. Quasimodo shows Esmeralda all the bells and takes her to the roof to see an impressive view of Paris. The two bond over how they have been misunderstood by others; Quasimodo as a monster and Esmeralda as an evil witch. Quasimodo sees how scared and alone Esmeralda is, being trapped in the cathedral and offers to help her, by climbing down the side of it to the streets. After a few missteps that scare Djali the goat half to death, they make it down. Esmeralda gives Quasimodo a map that will lead him to sanctuary if he ever wants to leave the cathedral, but he is unsure by the outside world after the day he’s had so returns to his home.
Once back in the bell tower, Quasimodo is surprised to find Phoebus there. Phoebus asks Quasimodo where Esmeralda is. He believes Phoebus wants to arrest her and tells Phoebus, quite aggressively, to leave. He does so, and is pleased to see that Esmeralda has a friend like Quasimodo, willing to protect her at any cost. The gargoyles tell Quasimodo that Esmeralda must like him, but Quasi shuts them down, never believing he will ever find love, although he holds out a small bit of hope as she did kiss him. Over the other side of the city, at the Palace of Justice, Frollo is struggling with his conscience as he has also fallen for Esmeralda, but he despises this feeling, believing it to be unholy and that this must have been brought on by her witchcraft. He plans to either marry her or have her killed, so either way he will win. The next day, Frollo tells Phoebus and the guards that their only objective for the day is to find Esmeralda, whatever it takes. He tries to bribe and torment other Romani people in to giving away her whereabouts but they all stand firm. Soon, they arrive at the mill where Frollo interrogates the miller and his family, as he found a talisman on the property. The miller says he knows nothing about it, but he is placed under house arrest and are trapped inside. Frollo then orders Phoebus to burn the house down. Phoebus refuses, so Frollo does it himself, setting fire to the windmill first, which then spreads quickly to the house. Phoebus is horrified and rescues the family. This makes him an enemy of Frollo and he is ordered to be beheaded. Esmeralda has witnessed all of this in disguise and tosses a stone at Frollo’s horse, so that it bucks and throws Frollo off, distracting the other guards. Phoebus jumps onto Frollo’s horse and tries to ride away but he is shot by archers and tumbles into the river. Esmeralda rescues Phoebus and takes him away to get help.
Later that day, Frollo still has not found Esmeralda and has set most of Paris on fire trying to find. He figures that Quasimodo must have helped her out of the cathedral that day. In the cathedral, Quasimodo is scared for Esmeralda’s safety, but the gargoyles tell him that she’ll be back, because she likes him, and that she is too smart to have been caught. Sure enough, Esmeralda arrives at the cathedral and asks Quasimodo to hide Phoebus. This isn’t exactly what he expected but he agrees anyway. Esmeralda stitches Phoebus’ wound up, which was dangerously close to piercing his heart. Phoebus tells her he’s not so sure it didn’t and they kiss, right in front of Quasimodo who is devastated. Djali bleats to warn them all that Frollo is coming. Quasimodo tells Esmeralda to leave and he hides Phoebus under a table. As Frollo arrives, he questions Quasimodo about Esmeralda and tells him he knows he helped her escape. Frollo destroys Quasi’s miniature city and burns his new Esmeralda figure, informing Quasimodo that he knows where Esmeralda’s hideout is and that tomorrow at dawn, he’ll attack with a thousand men.
Phoebus tells Quasimodo they have to find the Court of Miracles first, before Frollo does. Quasi believes it’s too late and does not want to disobey Frollo again. Phoebus goes alone. After some thought, Quasimodo decides he must help and catches up to Phoebus. He shows Phoebus the necklace Esmeralda gave him that will apparently lead them to her. After some arguing, they decide it is a map and follow it to a graveyard. Quasi moves a stone off one area which reveals some steps, leading to the old catacombs. They walk through the ankle-deep water, before being ambushed by the Romani people, who think they are spies for Frollo and sentence them to be hanged. Esmeralda tells them to stop, that these two are actually their friends. Phoebus warns everyone that they must leave because Frollo is coming. However, it turns out Frollo was bluffing and followed Quasimodo to the Court of Miracles; he’s here with his thousand men, who imprison all the Romani. Frollo announces that there will be a bonfire in the square tomorrow and that they are all invited to attend. Quasimodo is chained up in the bell tower.
In the square, Esmeralda has been tied to a stake, with firewood around her feet. Frollo recounts Esmeralda’s crimes and gives her a chance to recant, telling her to choose him or the fire. Esmeralda spits in Frollo’s face, which gives Frollo all the answers he needs; he sets the wood alight. Quasimodo again thinks he cannot help, telling the gargoyles to leave him alone, but as soon as he sees the fire, he is so angry that he breaks the pillars he is chained to and swings down to the platform. He rescues Esmeralda and carries her up the cathedral, proclaiming “sanctuary” to ensure her safety. Frollo orders a siege on Notre-Dame. Him and his guards try to break the door down with a plank of wood. Meanwhile, Phoebus frees himself from his cage and rallies the crowd to take back their city from the tyranny of Frollo. A mob begins to attack the soldiers, and Quasimodo and the gargoyles attack from above, with birds, a poorly used catapult and, finally, a cauldron of molten lead, poured onto the streets. This deters Frollo’s guards, but not Frollo who manages to enter the cathedral. He throws the Archdeacon down a flight of stairs, tells him not to interfere, and runs up to the bell tower.
Quasimodo tells Esmeralda she is safe now, but she doesn’t stir. Quasimodo believes she is dead and cries over her body. Frollo arrives and tells Quasimodo it was his duty to kill her. Frollo then attempts to stab Quasimodo but Quasi sees Frollo’s shadow and turns on him, throwing Frollo against the wall and taking the dagger. He tells Frollo what he was taught was wrong, that the world isn’t dark and cruel; it’s only people like him who are. Esmeralda then wakes up, at which point Frollo pulls out a sword to finish them both. Quasimodo grabs Esmeralda and tries to hide by dangling from the cathedral, but Frollo spots them and chases them down one side of the cathedral, slashing at the stone gargoyles they are swinging on them. Quasimodo then throws Esmeralda to the safety and faces Frollo atop a gargoyle. Frollo says that Quasimodo is willing to die for a Romani, just as Quasimodo’s mother did for him, revealing that Quasi was not abandoned and was not saved by Frollo. Frollo pulls his cape over Quasi and tries to throw him off the cathedral, doing “what he should have done twenty years ago”, but Quasimodo grabs on to the side of the cathedral, and Frollo is pulled down with him, clinging on to the cape. Quasimodo can’t bear to let the cape drop, which would drop Frollo with it, and he passes out from exhaustion. Frollo swings and clambers onto a gargoyle, holding his sword aloft. He proclaims to Esmeralda that “He will smite the wicked, and plunge them into the fiery pit”, at which point the gargoyle Frollo is standing on begins to crumble; it comes alive briefly as Frollo holds on to it, seeming to be an act of God, doing exactly what Frollo said.
Esmeralda is unable to hold onto Quasimodo for long, and he falls down the cathedral. Thankfully, Phoebus is below and manages to catch Quasimodo and pull him to safety. Esmeralda runs down to meet them. The three celebrate their victory, and Quasimodo accepts Esmeralda and Phoebus’ love for each other, joining their hands together in a very touching moment. The next morning, Paris is strangely clean and free of the previous night’s debris, and a huge crowd is waiting. Phoebus and Esmeralda come out of Notre-Dame together, but Quasimodo is reluctant to join them. Esmeralda offers her hand and coaxes him outside, where Phoebus and Esmeralda stand with him, showing he is not a monster but a hero to all of them. The crowd are unsure, until a little girl walks up to Quasimodo. She is uncertain but touches his face, to show he is no monster. Clopin also returns at this point, now asking the viewer “what makes a monster, and what makes a man?”, showing that Frollo was in fact the monster, not Quasimodo. The film ends with the crowd rejoicing and warmly accepting Quasimodo, carrying him away on their shoulders.
There is a very brief post-credits scene which shows Hugo the gargoyle waving to the camera and saying “goodnight, everybody”. I didn’t know about it before this week, but it wasn’t really worth waiting for when watching it on DVD, let alone if you’d seen it in a cinema, but it is apparently the first Disney animated film to have a post-credits scene.
CHARACTERS & CAST
Quasimodo is the main protagonist of The Hunchback of Notre Dame. He is brought up to believe that nobody in the outside world will ever accept him because of his appearance, that Frollo saved him after his mother abandoned him as a baby, and that Frollo is the only person he can trust. This is emotional abuse that Frollo has inflicted on Quasimodo for twenty years, giving him a distorted view of the world and of society in general. Sadly, his only friends at this point are Victor, Hugo, and Laverne, the gargoyles, who try to advise him and encourage him to not just sit inside as Frollo orders him to. Though Quasimodo is loyal to Frollo, the gargoyles do not share this loyalty and are aware of Frollo’s cruelty and evil soul. When Quasimodo does go outside for the first time, to the Festival of Fools, it’s quite a rollercoaster of emotions for him, because he falls in love with Esmeralda first, is revealed to be “ugly” in front of the crowd, which is embarrassing, but then seems to be accepted by them, only for that to all fall apart because of a couple of sadistic guards. This only cements the lies that Frollo has told him, that the majority of people could never like him and he will never belong in the real world. Thanks to Esmeralda’s kindness, he learns that actually, maybe Frollo was wrong about him and the world. He is incredibly brave to stand up to the man who raised him, and it was all worth it in the end because it turns out that Quasimodo was right; Frollo had been lying to him.
Quasimodo is a sensitive, caring person, who wants nothing more than to help people and be accepted as a person. He is even kind to those who don’t deserve it. Finding an actor who could meet these requirements with their voice was a necessity. Meat Loaf auditioned for the role and was apparently very good, but contractually, this didn’t line up. Mandy Patinkin, who played Inigo Montoya in The Princess Bride (1987) and starred as Che in the original Broadway production of Evita in 1979, also auditioned for the role, but this time, his portrayal of the character differed from what the directors wanted. Tom Hulce then auditioned for Quasimodo, despite Disney originally wanting him to have an older-sounding voice, with a speech impediment, similar to how Quasimodo had been portrayed in previous live-action film adaptations. However, they agreed on Hulce’s young-sounding voice, since Quasimodo in this film and in Victor Hugo’s novel is only twenty years old. They also felt that Hulce brought in the much-needed emotion and heart to the character[1]. Tom Hulce had been nominated for both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for Best Actor for his portrayal of Mozart in the 1984 film Amadeus. Sadly, he lost out to his co-star F. Murray Abraham on both occasions, who himself felt that the awards should have been shared between him and Hulce. I watched Amadeus recently, because I wanted to see Hulce’s performance in the film; he was great and the film was very good. Hulce also appeared in the films Animal House (1978) and Parenthood (1989) before The Hunchback of Notre Dame. In recent years, Hulce has worked as a theatre producer, having produced, and won a Tony Award in 2007 for, the musical Spring Awakening, which starred Lea Michele and Jonathan Groff.
Esmeralda is the feisty and independent love interest of Phoebus, but also the object of desire for Quasimodo and Frollo in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. She is stunningly beautiful but also caring, not wanting there to be any more racism against her people or anyone else, wishing that everyone could be accepted in this world. Unfortunately, that is not the case for the majority of the film, and, although Frollo is the main antagonist of the Romani in this film, there is prejudice from the other Parisians. For example, when Esmeralda is dancing on the streets, a woman tells her daughter to be careful because “they’re gypsies, they’ll steal us blind”, which is a ridiculous thing to say, but it shows the open distain for the Romani people. Because of this, the Court of Miracles is a “sanctuary” for Esmeralda and her people, where they can live in peace, away from those who seek to destroy them, even though it basically means they spend a lot of time in hiding. Esmeralda’s strong opinions around peace and equality lead her to develop a strong bond with Quasimodo, because they are both “outcasts”. She stands up to Frollo on numerous occasions to show that she won’t be persuaded to do anything that is against her moral compass. Oh yeah, and let’s not forget her sidekick, Djali, a goat, who is sometimes even more opinionated than Esmeralda is!
Demi Moore was chosen as the voice of Esmeralda. Moore was an original member of the so-called “Brat Pack”, actors all in their early twenties who had appeared in coming-of-age films in the 1980s. In Moore’s case, this was the movie St. Elmo’s Fire (1985). She also appeared as Jackie Templeton in General Hospital from 1982 to 1984. In the 1990s, Demi Moore was well-known for her performances in Ghost (1990) and A Few Good Men (1992). She appears in the 2024 series Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans as American socialite Ann Woodward.
Phoebus is the charming Captain of the Guard, who always has a joke ready for every occasion. He gets attacked by pretty much every main character: Esmeralda, Quasimodo, Djali, Clopin, Frollo, and yet, he still has a smile on his face and a comeback line every time. He’s not the main hero of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, even though he might look like it, but he does get the girl at the end. It’s not very often in Disney films that the hero or main protagonist doesn’t end up with the girl at the end of the film, but The Hunchback of Notre Dame is one such case. Curse you, Phoebus! No, not really. I like Phoebus; he’s funny, despite the fact his character doesn’t have all that much purpose. Sure, he fights on the bad guy’s side and then goes against him at the end of it, but this film is really about Quasimodo, Esmeralda and Frollo, let’s be honest! Phoebus does have one claim to fame though: he was the first Disney hero to have facial hair[2].
Kevin Kline was cast as the voice actor for Phoebus. He had starred alongside Meryl Streep in the drama Sophie’s Choice (1982) and John Cleese and Jamie Lee Curtis in the comedy A Fish Called Wanda (1988), for which Kline won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Kevin Kline had also performed as The Pirate King in the opera The Pirates of Penzance (1980-81), for which he won a Tony Award, and in the subsequent 1983 film. After The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Kline went back to voice work to record the voice of Tulio in DreamWorks’ The Road to El Dorado (2000), and more recently has voiced Calvin Fischoeder in Bob’s Burgers (2011-present). Kline also appeared as Maurice, Belle’s father, in the live-action remake Beauty and the Beast (2017).
The gargoyles are the comic relief of the film, but are also there to encourage Quasimodo to be more than just a recluse and to live his life without fear. Originally, the three gargoyles were going to be called Chaney, Laughton, and Quinn, the surnames of three actors who had played Quasimodo in other film adaptations of the novel, of which there are many[3]. Since gargoyles adorn the whole of the outside of Notre-Dame Cathedral, it was decided that three of these would be good characters to include and that of course they should talk. Charles Kimbrough voices the strong and wise Victor, who is also prone to panicking at times. Kimbrough had a long-running role as Jim Dial in the sitcom Murphy Brown (1988-99, 2018) for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 1990. He also appeared in The Wedding Planner (2001) and did some voice acting roles. Charles Kimbrough passed away in January 2023. The goofy, silly, frat boy gargoyle (as described by the directors) is Hugo and he is voiced by Jason Alexander. At the time, Alexander was best known for his role as George Costanza in Seinfeld (1989-98) for which he was nominated for seven consecutive Primetime Emmys and four Golden Globes. Outside of this, Alexander also appeared in the romantic comedies Pretty Woman (1990) and Shallow Hal (2001), and has done further voice work for both Disney and non-Disney projects. He has performed on stage in various productions and won a Tony Award for Best Actor in the musical Jerome Robbins’ Broadway (1989). The wise and tough Laverne is voiced by Mary Wickes in her final performance. Wickes appeared in the musical White Christmas (1954) as Emma Allen, the housekeeper of the inn, and The Music Man (1962) as Mrs. Squires. She was also Sister Mary Lazarus in Sister Act (1992) and its 1993 sequel, and was a live model for the character of Cruella de Vil. As Wickes died during production on the film, Jane Withers was brought in to finish Laverne’s final lines[4].
Now on to the final main character of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the evil Judge Claude Frollo. Supervising Animator Kathy Zielinski worked on the design for Frollo and she said she loved working on this super evil villain. In many lists ranking all of the Disney villains, Frollo frequently comes out on top. This is because Frollo is just a normal human, with no magical powers or access to sorcery. What he does have is status and power, and this film clearly shows just how dangerous that is in the wrong hands, and how it can be used to commit atrocious acts against humanity. Frollo makes Quasimodo believe that the world is cruel, when actually Frollo is one of the people that makes the world cruel. He has no sympathy for the orphaned, at Frollo’s own hand, Quasimodo, nor does he care about the Romani people, or any of the other citizens of Paris who are different to him. A very religious man, Frollo believes that it is his duty to God to rid the world of the people he deems to be unholy and unworthy. Frollo is a very dark character, and unlike many of the other villains of the Disney Renaissance Era, there is nothing remotely funny or silly about him. He is just pure evil – and that’s why people like him, oddly enough.
I’m in awe of his voice more than anything. It’s deep and smooth, charming one minute, terrifying the next, like all the best villain voices. It’s similar in a way to Jeremy Irons’ and Alan Rickman’s voices, which is why they also made great villains. Tony Jay voices Judge Claude Frollo. Jay appeared as the Narrator and as Professor Werner in the Arnold Schwarzenegger-Danny DeVito film Twins (1988) and was the Narrator in the second Austin Powers film… Jay also provided other voices for Disney including Monsieur D’Arque in Beauty and the Beast (1991), Dr. Rosenthal in Recess: School’s Out (2001), alongside James Woods, voice of Hades; the Narrator of Treasure Planet (2002); and Shere Khan in The Jungle Book 2 (2002), replacing George Saunders. He was also the voice of Dr. Lipschitz in the Rugrats franchise. Sadly, Tony Jay passed away in August 2006 at the age of 73. Just think what more he could’ve done for Disney….
On a final note, Clopin Trouillefou, the “leader” of the Romani, as well as being a brilliant puppeteer and jester, was voiced by Paul Kandel. Though Clopin is his most notable role, Kandel has also performed on Broadway numerous times, including playing King Herod in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. David Ogden Stiers voiced the Archdeacon here. David Ogden Stiers had a long history with Disney, having voiced Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast (1991); Governor Ratcliffe and Wiggins in Pocahontas (1995); and Dr. Jumba Jookiba in Lilo & Stitch (2002) amongst others. He also starred as Major Charles Emerson Winchester III in the series M*A*S*H from 1977 to 1983. He died in 2018.
PRODUCTION
The Hunchback of Notre Dame is based on the novel Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo. It was published in 1831 from a 200,000-word manuscript that was written in around six months. It was an instant success. In 1833 for the second English translation, the title was changed from Notre-Dame de Paris to The Hunchback of Notre Dame. It was written as a way of championing the Gothic architecture of the cathedral which was at the time being considered vulgar. The cathedral was also in a state of disrepair and there were even calls to demolish it. Hugo wanted to save the cathedral so that it could continue to be a symbol of Paris – and his plan worked! The cathedral was restored between 1844 and 1864, where many of the original Gothic elements were reinstated. In the novel, there are numerous lengthy descriptions of the cathedral’s architecture and design[5].
Whether you have read Victor Hugo’s original novel or not, it is clear that this was not the easiest of source material for Disney to adapt for a family-friendly animated feature. Disney were known for adapting well-known fairy tales or folklore and legends, not classic novels, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame is particularly grim.
In the novel, set in 1482, during the reign of Louis XI, Frollo is actually an Archdeacon, not a judge. Disney likely changed Frollo’s occupation so the religious aspect was not called in to question. In the novel, Frollo does not kill Quasimodo’s mother, nor does he name him that because it means “half-formed”. Though Frollo does use Quasimodo to his own advantage and is not particularly caring towards him, Frollo adopts the infant on Quasimodo Sunday, the first Sunday after Easter, hence the name, after his mother abandoned him. Frollo falls in love with Esmeralda and orders Quasimodo to kidnap her. Instead, Quasimodo is arrested and put in the stocks. Esmeralda is actually in love with Captain Phoebus, who is engaged to a beautiful woman from a rich family, but Esmeralda marries the poet Gringoire, who is not a character in the Disney film, after he wanders into the Court of Miracles accidentally, so that Gringoire is not hanged by Clopin. She only does this to be kind and does not love him. One day, Esmeralda meets with Phoebus and asks if he’ll marry her. He lies and says he will just to seduce her. Frollo has hidden himself in the room next door and witnesses the two kiss. Out of jealousy, he stabs Phoebus and kisses Esmeralda as she faints.
When she wakes up, Esmeralda is arrested for the wounding of Phoebus, who survives and returns to his fiancée, not even attempting to clear Esmeralda’s name. Nice guy, right? Under torture, Esmeralda admits to the attack and is sentenced to death. Quasimodo, who is also in love with Esmeralda, saves her from the gallows and takes her to the cathedral where she can claim sanctuary. The Romani are informed that Esmeralda’s right to sanctuary is to be revoked and they storm the cathedral to save her. The authorities come for her as well, but Frollo and Gringoire have helped her escape. Frollo becomes more obsessive and continually says that if Esmeralda stays with him, he can save her. She continually refuses. Eventually, Frollo gets fed up with this and passes her to the authorities, trapping her with Sister Gudule, a recluse who went mad after her daughter, Agnes, was stolen by Romani. However, in a twist, it turns out Esmeralda is Agnes and the two reconcile, albeit briefly. Esmeralda is led away to be hanged, with Gudule being forcefully pushed down a flight of steps as she tries to stop this; she dies on impact. Frollo watches Esmeralda hang from Notre-Dame Cathedral and laughs, causing Quasimodo to throw him from the tower. Many years later, two skeletons are found embracing. It turns out Quasimodo stayed next to Esmeralda’s dead body, letting himself die as he held her. As the two skeletons are about to be separated, Quasimodo’s skeleton “crumbles to dust”. What a cheery story!
Obviously, Disney could not make this story into an animated film for children, so they had to make some changes, which is completely fair enough. I’ve read the book as I asked for it for my birthday when I was at university. It was interesting to see where Disney got some of their ideas from, like Quasimodo’s mother dying on the steps in the same way Esmeralda’s mother does in the novel.
In 1993, David Stainton read a comic strip adaptation of the original novel and felt that Disney could adapt the story themselves. Writer Tab Murphy was assigned to write the script, quite a challenge seeing as the material was a classic novel and a dark one at that. Directors Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise, who had co-directed Beauty and the Beast (1991), were asked to direct The Hunchback of Notre Dame. They were working on other projects at the time, however, those were not progressing well, so they were happy to direct this film[6]. In fact, many of the same people who worked on Beauty and the Beast were involved in the making of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, such as producer Don Hahn, and animators Glen Keane, supervising animator for Beast, and James Baxter, supervising animator for Belle.
As is quite standard for Disney animation projects, some of the creative and production staff got to go on a research trip, to France in this case. The group went to Notre-Dame Cathedral several times around the autumn of 1993. Because of the importance of studying the cathedral in detail, both the interior and exterior of the building, Disney were given unprecedented access to the cathedral, being able to tour passages, hidden rooms, and the towers. Animator Glen Keane used to go to Notre-Dame Cathedral to sit in the bell tower as the sun rose, drawing and thinking[7]. They also visited the Palace of Justice, Frollo’s main place of work in the film, and the Court of Miracles, which was a real area of Paris, but instead of it being a safe haven for the Romani people as it is in the Disney film, the Court of Miracles was the term used to describe the slum areas of the city, where the poor and homeless resided. The architecture and buildings of Paris are vitally important to the setting of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, for providing background areas as well as atmosphere. Notre-Dame Cathedral itself is a unique character in the film, as its statues and gargoyles are seen to be watching everything and even involve themselves in the events of the film[8]. Notre-Dame Cathedral shockingly caught fire in April 2019 where it was very close to being destroyed. Thanks to many brave firefighters, it was saved and is in the process of being restored.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame required the artistic talents of animators in all three of Disney animation’s studios, those being Florida, which only contributed a few minutes of animation, Paris, and of course, California. In fact, after years of using those lacklustre Glendale “offices”, the new Animation Building was opened in December 1994 in Burbank, making The Hunchback of Notre Dame the first animated feature film to be produced at this new building. At the Paris studio, around one hundred artists contributed ten minutes of final animation to the film, with many saying that the use of French artists who were accustomed to the city of Paris and the French culture, not to mention Hugo’s novel, gave the film authenticity[9]!
The animation medium used to create The Hunchback of Notre Dame was predominately traditional hand-drawn animation, however, with the increasing evolution of technology, the Disney team were able to use computer-animation for several elements of the film. This included some of the effects, like confetti, rain, and lighting, such as that beam of light that shines through one of Notre-Dame Cathedral’s famous rose windows during “God Help the Outcasts”. But one of the more impressive, for the time, usages of CGI in this movie is the crowd scenes. Huge crowds were needed to fill Paris and thanks to similar technology that had been used for the wildebeest stampede in The Lion King (1994), the effects team made a character model which could move, then multiplied it, changing some of the character’s accessories to make them unique, and then choreographed their movements. For today’s audiences, the CGI crowd may look a bit simplistic and basic, and, as a warning, if you go looking for it, you’ll never be able to ignore it again, but the technology hadn’t been used in this way before The Hunchback of Notre Dame, so it was quite ground-breaking for Disney animation.
MUSIC
The Hunchback of Notre Dame’s soundtrack is one of the more sophisticated Disney soundtracks, in my opinion. The score uses elements like bells, Latin chants, and choral sounds, which are specifically related to the religious aspects of the story; something that cannot be said for any other Disney animated feature. It gives the music so much depth, intensity, and emotion. Then there are the songs themselves, which are quite bold and daring for Disney, as well as including a few more light-hearted numbers, for a total of eight songs. The soundtrack for the movie reunited Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz, who had both worked together on the soundtrack for Pocahontas (1995).
Let’s start at the beginning. Clopin actually gets the most songs of any character here, having four in total, though one is just a reprise of his first song, “The Bells of Notre Dame”. Straight away, the movie launches us into this song, which is basically a way of giving us backstory into Quasimodo’s life and his complicated relationship with Frollo. We see how unfeeling and heartless Frollo is, to kill Quasimodo’s mother and almost drown Quasimodo, but we also see how God-fearing Frollo is, thinking his every move is being judged. The Gregorian chant, “Dies Irae”, which was used in part in Frozen II (2019) as well as in The Shining (1980), can be heard when Frollo kills Quasimodo’s mother[10]. “The Bells of Notre Dame” is good for giving us information, and for informing us that we need to pay attention to Quasimodo and Frollo’s actions to judge what makes someone a man and what makes someone a monster, but it is more of a narrative device than a fun number. Still, it’s never boring and gets a lot done. The reprise at the very end of the film of “The Bells of Notre Dame” is much more celebratory and brings the film to an emotional close, as we see that Quasimodo has been accepted and we learn not to judge anyone on their appearance because this can mask someone’s true intentions.
Another of Clopin’s songs, “Topsy Turvy”, is a real carnival song, full of party atmosphere. Though, during the scene, it is a bit strange to find Clopin following Quasimodo around and not allowing him to hide. I don’t understand why Clopin wants Quasimodo to get caught or noticed; maybe to give Quasimodo the chance to let his guard down for once and relax? The fun is paused when Quasimodo’s face is revealed and the crowd are repulsed, but it soon picks back up again to celebrate Quasimodo’s new title of King of Fools. Shame it doesn’t last…Clopin’s final song is “The Court of Miracles”, where he is telling Phoebus and Quasimodo that they should not have trespassed to their lair, thinking they are two of Frollo’s spies, so plans to have them hanged. Luckily, Djali sees this and alerts Esmeralda, so she comes in and puts things right, but it does look troubling for the two heroes for a moment or two. It’s not the best song of the film, but it’s a bit of silliness before Frollo arrives.
Esmeralda gets her own song, “God Help the Outcasts”, which she sings shortly after the turn of events at the Feast of Fools in Notre-Dame Cathedral, as she is saddened by how poorly the human race treat each other, even those in need. It’s a very heartfelt song, and I particularly like how the music builds as the other churchgoers pray to God for what they feel they most need from Him. Demi Moore did not provide the singing voice for Esmeralda so Heidi Mollenhauer was brought in to sing “God Help the Outcasts”. Though this was the original song written for this scene, at one point, the directors thought they wanted a more energising song here, so “Someday” was written. It was recorded by Heidi Mollenhauer again, and still involved Esmeralda walking through the cathedral, hoping that the world would become a better place “someday”. It was later decided that “Someday” was too big a number, so “God Help the Outcasts” was put back in to the film[11]. I personally feel this was the right choice, though “Someday” is still a good song. “Someday” is included on the movie soundtrack, in some parts of the score, and in the closing credits, where the full song was recorded by R&B group All-4-One. In the UK, female R&B trio Eternal recorded their own version. “Someday” is also used in the stage musical version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame and, in a surprise-but-appreciated move, was used as the finale song of Epcot’s now-closed fireworks show Harmonious at Walt Disney World Resort.
Let’s not forget the hero of the film, Quasimodo, who has two very heart-breaking musical numbers in the film. The first of which is “Out There”, which begins with a short duet between Frollo and Quasimodo as Frollo tells Quasimodo that he should not attend the Festival of Fools because he’ll be “reviled as a monster”, before moving into Quasi’s powerful solo, where he says that all he wants is to leave the bell tower for one day and live a normal life with everyone else. During this sequence, you can also see brief cameos of Belle, Aladdin’s Magic Carpet, and Pumbaa if you look closely enough. Tom Hulce is amazing in this song because we can feel how much Quasimodo wants this wish and just how isolated he has been throughout his life. This song is one of the movie’s most well-known having been used in some of Disney’s nighttime shows, such as Harmonious, Happily Ever After at Magic Kingdom, and Disney Dreams! at Disneyland Paris, and Wondrous Journeys at Disneyland, which have both ended but may return in the future. It’s a fan-favourite song, so I’m glad it keeps cropping up.
Quasimodo’s second song is called “Heaven’s Light”. This is a tragic song because it talks about how Quasi never thinks he’ll find love because of how he looks, but holds a bit of hope that perhaps Esmeralda will love him. It doesn’t turn out to be true, which makes it even more sad. I used to relate to this song when I was a teenager, because like Quasimodo, I was unlucky in love for many years and always felt it was because I was ugly.
This song then moves directly to Frollo’s song “Hellfire”, as a contrast to “Heaven’s Light”, with a few seconds of Latin chanting by the Archdeacon within the cathedral as we move from Notre-Dame Cathedral to the Palace of Justice. “Hellfire” is Frollo’s turn to sing about his love for Esmeralda, but this song is not a sweet ballad. It is an aggressive song which gets progressively worse as Frollo gets angrier about the “spell” that Esmeralda has put on him, and more scared about how God will judge him for his feelings, despite it not being his “fault”. It takes place in front of a fireplace, in a large hall, which at one point fills with red-hooded figures who chant “mea culpa” at him, meaning “my fault”. The figures then turn to flames, trying to take Frollo into the fire, signifying him being dragged to Hell. Frollo is then told that Esmeralda has escaped, and proclaims that he’ll find her even if it means burning down the city. He asserts that she will be his or she will burn, before collapsing in a heap on the floor… Dark stuff considering Disney is meant to make child-friendly films, not that I remember being bothered by it when I was younger, because I didn’t understand it back then. The Motion Picture Association of America got involved with this scene, though, insisting that the image of Esmeralda that appears in the fireplace was made to have more clearly defined clothes as she looked naked[12]. Disney were probably happy to make this adjustment as they may have been expecting this scene to be cut entirely from the film! “Hellfire” has become one of the most well-known Disney villains’ songs for its dark tone.
On a brighter note, the gargoyles get a song called “A Guy Like You” as they tell Quasimodo that Esmeralda does like him, and the fact that he is unique makes him all the more interesting. Some, even those at Disney, did not rate this song, and felt that it should not have made the final cut, however, I disagree. Though it is quite random, I think it was wholly necessary to keep the children watching entertained and also to break up the bleakness of the film’s events, because we’ve just had the burning of the miller’s house and most of Paris, and then we’re going to get to the big climatic battle scene where Esmeralda is burnt at the stake, so to have “A Guy Like You” brings some much-needed frivolity to the film before we go back to feeling scared and traumatised. It’s my least favourite song on the soundtrack, but I still find it funny in places. I like how they say that Quasimodo being shaped like a croissant is one of the reasons that Esmeralda likes him, because what person doesn’t rate their romantic interests on how much they resemble baked goods? It’s also interesting that a very small reference to Hulce’s role as Mozart in Amadeus (1984) is found in this song: when the gargoyles give Quasimodo a makeover, he ends up in a tall, white wig, which is what Mozart predominantly wears throughout that film.
There were a couple of deleted songs that didn’t make the final cut, both of which were meant to take place during “The Court of Miracles” sequence as a love song for Phoebus and Esmeralda. The first, “As Long As There’s a Moon” would’ve seen the two getting married in the Court of Miracles, with Quasimodo being asked to put their hands together. He does this at the end of the film instead. This story idea was perhaps inspired by the novel when the sixteen-year-old Esmeralda volunteers to marry playwright Gringoire to save him from being hanged by Clopin for trespassing. The other love song was called “In A Place of Miracles” and took place at the same point in the film. It was decided that these songs were placing too much focus on Phoebus and Esmeralda, when Quasimodo should be at the heart of the movie, so it became a song for Clopin and the others instead[13].
The score is where The Hunchback of Notre Dame really shines with its hauntingly beautiful use of choristers singing in Latin. This is used throughout the entirety of the score. Though I said my favourite Disney score is probably Pocahontas (1995) because of how quietly romantic it is, I find the score of The Hunchback of Notre Dame the most compelling and emotion-provoking. The whole movie is very intense, so the score had to have that same quality to it, and it certainly does. “Humiliation”, when Quasimodo is being tormented by the crowd at the Festival of Fools, is my favourite of the instrumentals, though the score through the whole battle sequence is amazing, especially when Quasimodo swings in to save Esmeralda and proclaims “Sanctuary!” at the top of his lungs. “Into the Sunlight” is also very sweet for showing Quasimodo being welcomed by the citizens of Paris at last.
RECEPTION
The Hunchback of Notre Dame was released to theatres in the US on 21st June 1996 with a surprise G, or U, rating. Many felt, and still feel to this day, that The Hunchback of Notre Dame should have certainly had a PG rating, due to its dark content and intense scenes. How many Disney films can say that they managed to have a G rating despite a scene of someone being burnt at the stake, another being tied up like an animal, an old man openly lusting after a young woman, and a family home being burnt down with them inside? Not to mention the racism, plans for genocide, and the emotional abuse of a disabled person. It doesn’t sound great when you put it altogether like that, but I was never affected by the movie as a child. I’m sure if it had been released now, or even after the 2000s, it would have most certainly had that PG rating. Pre-2000 in Disney Animation, only The Black Cauldron had been given a PG rating, quite rightly too. Apparently, Roy E. Disney said The Hunchback of Notre Dame was too dark, as did the voice of Hugo, Jason Alexander, who said he would not let his young son watch the movie, despite Alexander being proud of the film.
In terms of reviews, some felt the film was too dark, with some groups even planning to boycott the film for its mature content, and that the stereotyping of the Romani people was hurtful. Others also felt that Disney had simplified the original novel too much. If Disney had adapted the novel as it was written, it would not even have managed a PG rating. However, some were very positive about The Hunchback of Notre Dame, including well-known film reviewer Roger Ebert, who called it the best Disney feature since Beauty and the Beast. Ebert said it was uplifting and thrilling, with a touching message about accepting everyone. I’m glad someone understood it.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame was nominated at the Academy Awards in 1997 for Best Original Musical or Comedy Score, but it lost out to Rachel Portman’s score for Emma (1996). It was also nominated for a Golden Globe for its score, but this time lost to Gabriel Yared’s score for The English Patient (1996). The Hunchback of Notre Dame was also nominated for many Annie Awards, including Best Feature, where it lost to Pixar’s Toy Story (1995). It did, however, win the Satellite Award for Best Motion Picture – Animated or Mixed Media, the first year that the award was given out. On the other side though, it was nominated for a Golden Razzie for Worst Written Film Grossing Over $100 Million, but this time luckily it lost to Twister (1996), though I like that film too, so ouch…
Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame was by no means a box-office failure, despite its mixed reviews and general lack of recognition for many years. It made over $300 million worldwide at the box-office, however, after the dazzling success of The Lion King in 1994, this was not deemed “good enough” by Disney executives.
LEGACY
Though it has never reached Broadway in the US or the West End in the UK, The Hunchback of Notre Dame was made into a musical, based on both the original novel and Disney’s 1996 film, including its songs and some of the film’s deleted songs such as “Someday” and “A Place of Miracles”, which is beautiful, as well as new numbers. The original musical premiered in 1999 in Berlin as Der Glöckner von Notre Dame: Das Musical. It was produced by Disney Theatrical Productions, with this being their first musical to premiere outside the US. It ran in Berlin for three years at the Berlin Theatre, now named Theater am Potsdamer Platz. I believe I stood outside it with my mum when we went to Berlin because I wanted to see the theatre where The Hunchback of Notre Dame musical had been many years before. In 2014, an American version of the musical was staged in San Diego from October to December 2014, before opening at the Paper Mill Playhouse in New Jersey in 2015, closing in April of that year. It did not move to Broadway, though it did receive positive reviews. It did finally debut in New York in December 2017, but not on Broadway. Other versions around the world have been performed in recent years, including in the UK, Japan, and Australia. The musical version of the story is darker than the Disney movie, including more details from the novel that were omitted or changed for the Disney film, such as Frollo being the Archdeacon of Notre-Dame, Quasimodo being deaf from the constant bell ringing, and Esmeralda and Frollo’s deaths matching the novel. Though thankfully, Phoebus is portrayed as he is in the Disney film, and not the novel.
In March 2002, fittingly of the time, a direct-to-video sequel was released, The Hunchback of Notre Dame II. Many of the voice cast returned, including Demi Moore and Tom Hulce, with child actor Haley Joel Osment, actress and singer Jennifer Love Hewitt, and comedic actor Michael McKean joining the cast as Zephyr, Phoebus and Esmeralda’s son, Madellaine, Quasimodo’s love interest, and Sarousch, the villain of the film, respectively. It received mostly negative reviews as many of these direct-to-video sequels do, but I love it. The animation is not good, I can accept that, but the story of Quasimodo finally finding love is very sweet and it gave me hope when I was younger that I would also find love. The songs are more simplistic than the soundtrack of the original soundtrack, with all of them being quite jokey numbers, but “I’m Gonna Love You”, the love ballad, that features in the credits is a highlight. I remember seeing the trailer for this at one of the shops in the Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World, and being really excited about it.
Around 2019, a live-action remake of The Hunchback of Notre Dame was announced by Disney. Not surprising, really, as they did this with so many others. But as of 2023, it is thought that CEO Bob Iger has shut the project down, possibly due to the current social climate. I never thought I’d say this, but thank you, Bob Iger; you’ve done something I agree with! I dislike all Disney live-action remakes, but I was furious when the initial news came out about this for a couple of reasons. The first was that it is not necessary at all and I didn’t want them messing with “my film”. Secondly, I think if it had been, or is made, it’s opening Disney up to criticism, because they would have to either rewrite their animated movie to a point where it no longer resembles the 1996 film or the 1831 novel, or they would have to accept the tirade of comments that would come from making a movie in this day and age about someone persecuting entire groups of people, and someone being physically and emotionally abused for their disability. Sure, it all comes right in the end, but to get to that point, you’d have to show mistreatment and use unacceptable language, and I don’t think it’s worth it. There are already plenty of faithful live-action adaptations of the novel, so I think we should all just leave it there.
At the Disney theme parks, the heyday for The Hunchback of Notre Dame was definitely in the 1990s, shortly after its release. At Disneyland, the Big Thunder Ranch area was rethemed as The Hunchback of Notre Dame: Festival of Fools in 1996. The cabin there became Esmeralda’s Cabin and the Festival Arena staged a live-show between 21st June 1996 to 19th April 1998. This area became a corporate event space after that until 2004 when it was rethemed to Disney’s Home on the Range (2004) for a brief time[14]. Also at Disneyland, as well as at Disneyland Paris, there was a mini parade that ran as promotion for the movie between 1996 and 1997. The two parades at the two parks were different, as Paris’ one was also to celebrate the park’s 5th anniversary so had quite a few more floats and was called the Carnival of Fools Parade. Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Paris was also decorated in confetti and jester hats from 1997 to the beginning of 1998 to celebrate this milestone anniversary.
At Walt Disney World’s Disney-MGM Studios, as it was known then, The Hunchback of Notre Dame: A Musical Adventure ran from 21st June 1996 to 28th September 2002. It was held at the Backlot Theater, and was an abridged 30-minute version of the film, that even had a pre-show juggler. It used many of the film’s original songs, although “Hellfire” was cut for obvious reasons. It was a very popular show and I’m sure many people are sad that it is not still going; I remember seeing it many times on my earlier visits.
So those are the experiences that no longer exist, but there are a few current references to The Hunchback of Notre Dame to mention. One is at Fantasy Faire at Disneyland where this is a small window called Clopin’s Music Box. It plays the song “Topsy Turvy” as Clopin and the festival crowd move from side-to-side. At Hong Kong Disneyland, there is a restaurant location in Fantasyland called Clopin’s Festival of Foods, which is themed to the Festival of Fools, with tents, banners, and bright colours. At Walt Disney World, at Disney’s Hollywood Studios nighttime spectacular show Fantasmic!, Frollo still appears during the villains’ sections. I am so glad he was not removed during their redesign of the show, because I feared he may be. A figure of Quasimodo can be seen in one of the windows at the Disney’s Days of Christmas shop in Disney Springs.
Finally, for character appearances, though Esmeralda, Phoebus, Clopin, Quasimodo, and Frollo have all been spotted at times across the Disney Parks, they are rare characters to meet and do not have designated appearance times. Recently, at Disneyland, Frollo was part of the Halloween parade at the Oogie Boogie Bash in 2023. During the Disneyland After Dark: 90s Nite, Phoebus, Clopin, and Esmeralda were in attendance. At Disneyland Paris in 2019, all five characters were available for meet-and-greets at their Annual Passholder Night; I have also seen Frollo at Disneyland Paris during Halloween events. In 2021 at Hong Kong Disneyland and in 2023 at Tokyo Disneyland, Esmeralda was spotted. At Walt Disney World, the characters are much rarer to see and I have never met any of them there before, but they have all been at Special Events in previous years. It is unclear whether any of The Hunchback of Notre Dame characters have been spotted at Shanghai Disneyland.
There has been more merchandise around The Hunchback of Notre Dame in recent years. In the 2000s, it was rarely referenced and I used to get anything that had the smallest reference to The Hunchback of Notre Dame or one of its characters. For example, I bought the Disney Villains Monopoly game at Walt Disney World one year just because Frollo’s face was on the box, though I did find that one of the playing pieces is his hat, so that made it seem more of a worthy purchase! But recently, there have been a few Christmas ornaments that you can buy featuring Quasimodo and Esmeralda; a statue of Esmeralda and a doll were also found on the Disney Store recently. A MagicBand with Quasimodo and Esmeralda must have been released at one point because I randomly found it at the Beach Club Resort shop at Walt Disney World, and it was the last one. Paintings and prints of scenes from the film may also be available to purchase these days.
FINAL THOUGHTS
In recent years, I don’t watch the film as much as I used to, but I probably watch it at least three times a year still, and I still like to hunt for merchandise. It’s just such a great film, and I do appreciate the further discussion around it in recent years, but I am very protective of it and hate when things that are “trendy” for a couple of years then get passed over for something else, which will naturally happen here when another lesser-known animated film hits a milestone anniversary.
Some would say that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) is Disney’s masterpiece. Others, especially 90s kids, might say the same about Beauty and the Beast (1991) or The Lion King (1994), but for me, the greatest masterpiece from Disney animation has been, is, and will always be The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
It’s hard to express exactly why or how much I love this film, but I guess I can try with these simple statements:
Frollo will always be my villain.
Esmeralda will always be my princess.
And Quasimodo will always be my hero.
REFERENCES
[1] Credit: Natasha Lavender, ‘The Untold Truth Of Disney’s The Hunchback Of Notre Dame’, Looper.com, 25th October 2023.
[2] Credit: Disney, “The Making of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) Blu-Ray (2013).
[3] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)’, pp. 100-102.
[4] Credit: Disney, “The Making of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) Blu-Ray (2013).
[5] Credit: Disney, “History and Background of Notre Dame de Paris”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) DVD (2002).
[6] Credit: Disney, “History of the Production of The Hunchback of Notre Dame”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) DVD (2002).
[7] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)’, pp. 100-102.
[8] Credit: Disney, “History and Background of Notre Dame de Paris”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) DVD (2002).
[9] Credit: Disney, “The Making of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) Blu-Ray (2013).
[10] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)’, pp. 100-102.
[11] Credit: Disney, “Deleted Sequence: Esmeralda’s Prayer”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) DVD (2002).
[12] Credit: Jim Korkis, Everything I Know I Learned from Disney Animated Feature Films (2015), ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)’, pp. 100-102.
[13] Credit: Disney, “Deleted Songs”, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) LaserDisc Deluxe Edition (1997).
[14] Credit: Author Unknown, ‘Little Patch of Heaven at Big Thunder Ranch’, Yesterland.com, 17th February 2023.
The Disney Purist 