THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME
A film review by Scott Renshaw
Copyright 1996 Scott Renshaw
(Disney) Voices: Tom Hulce, Demi Moore, Kevin Kline, Tony Jay, Jason Alexander, Charles Kimbrough, Mary Wickes. Screenplay: Tab Murphy, Irene Mecchi, Bob Tzudiker, Nomi White, Jonathan Roberts. Producer: Don Hahn. Directors: Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale. Reviewed by Scott Renshaw.
As I sat in my car twenty minutes after the conclusion of THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, tears still welling up in my eyes, I though about what made me respond to Disney's recent animated hits, even flawed efforts like POCAHONTAS. It was not simply animation to which I was responding, since animated films like BALTO had left me unmoved, and I like to believe that Disney's ubiquitous marketing had no influence. I thought about the moments in films like BEAUTY AND THE BEAST and THE LITTLE MERMAID which had filled me with the pure joy of film artistry, and I realized the connection: music. THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME is dark, enchanting, visually spectacular and richer in thematic depth than 99% of the live action films I see, but I know that it was the power of grand opera which pushed me over the edge.
Based on Victor Hugo's 1831 classic, THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME tells of Quasimodo (voice of Tom Hulce), the deformed bellringer living in the tower of Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral. Raised since infancy by the cruel Minister of Justice Claude Frollo (Tony Jay), Quasimodo lives a lonely existence with only the stone gargoyles of the cathedral as his friends: Victor (Charles Kimbrough), Hugo (Jason Alexander) and Laverne (Mary Wickes). But on the Festival of Fools, Quasimodo decides to venture into the streets, where he is rescued from an uncaring crowd by the beautiful gypsy Esmeralda (Demi Moore). Quasimodo becomes enchanted with Esmeralda, but a furious Frollo, who considers gypsies evil, demands that she be arrested and punished. When Frollo's Captain of the Guard Phoebus (Kevin Kline) decides to help Esmeralda, Quasimodo finds him a rival for Esmeralda's affections, but an ally in the struggle to save her from Frollo's wrath.
There is no question that computer technology is allowing Disney animators an ever-increasing freedom, and the opportunity to create some astonishing images. There are scenes involving thousands of "extras" which are simply extraordinary, and a swooping shot as Quasimodo comes to Esmeralda's rescue which is breath-taking. Still, the conventional character animation might be even better. It seems almost unfair to single out one star, but I will: Kathy Zielinski, the character supervisor for Frollo. She has designed one of Disney's most complicated villains ever, a tormented and hateful zealot with a mouth so cruel and subtly expressive that he makes you want to shudder every time he smiles. With superb voice work by Tony Jay, Frollo becomes a brilliant characterization. If an animator ever deserved credit for a Best Supporting Actor performance, this might be the case.
Frollo's tortured soul (revealed in a creepy and very un-Disney-like song called "Hellfire") is just one of many rather adult subjects which gives HUNCHBACK a surprising resonance. Frollo's relationship with Quasimodo is that of an abusive parent who tears down his child's self-esteem, then makes him feel grateful because he still takes care of the child. Quasimodo's cowering respect for Frollo is heart-breaking, rendered poignantly by Tom Hulce. HUNCHBACK also tackles prejudice and religious hypocrisy, with Esmeralda's entreaty "God Help the Outcasts" observing that Jesus was "once an outcast too." There is certainly a fair amount of comic relief, mostly provided by the gargoyles and the lively number "A Guy Like You," but if HUNCHBACK is at all a film for children, it is one which exposes them to issues their parents should be prepared to discuss.
The messages in HUNCHBACK are powerful, and they are skillfully handled, but there is something that happens when they are set to music. The songs by Alan Menken and Steven Schwartz are not particularly memorable by Disney standards, nothing you will be humming for days afterwards like "Be Our Guest" or "Under the Sea," but they are evocative. A heartfelt sentiment which is sung rather than spoken draws its emotion from a different place. Hollywood seems to believe that no one wants to see a musical in 1996, and that Disney's films are aberrations because they are animated. I'm not convinced that the real issue isn't choice of material. Disney selects timeless tales, and a timeless tale in song is a powerful thing.
There are certainly more than a few similarities between THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME and BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (also directed by Kirk Wise and Gary Trousdale); if it had been live action, I'd have sworn that they re-used some of the same sets in the opening number. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is a better film, a classic, and yet there I was, twenty minutes after the conclusion of HUNCHBACK, tears still welling up in my eyes, emotionally invested in the life of an animated character. And though the songs may not have been on my lips, I know they were in my heart.
On the Renshaw scale of 0 to 10 belle towers: 9.
-- Scott Renshaw Stanford University http://www-leland.stanford.edu
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