The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939 film)

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The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Directed by	William Dieterle
Produced by	Pandro S. Berman
Written by	Victor Hugo (novel) Bruno Frank (screenplay)
Starring	Charles Laughton Maureen O'Hara Cedric Hardwicke
Music by	Alfred Newman
Cinematography	Joseph H. August
Editing by	William Hamilton & Robert Wise
Distributed by	RKO Radio Pictures
Release date(s)	September 1, 1939
Running time	116 min.
Language	English
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1939 American monochrome motion picture. It is considered by some reviewers to be the best of the many film versions of Victor Hugo's classic novel, and perhaps the one that sticks closest to Hugo's plot and intention, although the ending differs. As in most adaptions, most of the main characters, including Esmeralda and Quasimodo, are alive at the end, unlike in the book, where they die.

The film tells the tragic tale of a disfigured cathedral bellringer who falls for the beautiful gypsy, Esmeralda in medieval Paris, France. The film provides the stage for one of Laughton's greatest portrayals, as the tragic title figure. Backed up by Maureen O'Hara's sweet but fiery Esmeralda, and Hardwicke's chilling prosecutor, Frollo. Atmospheric direction, and stark yet lavish sets, combine with the fine performances to create a very notable film. The film later inspired the Disney version of the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Look closely, and most of the characters in the film (especially Quasimodo ) resemble the Disney version of the characters.

[edit] Primary cast

Charles Laughton as Quasimodo
Sir Cedric Hardwicke as Frollo
Maureen O'Hara as Esmeralda
Thomas Mitchell as Clopin
Edmond O'Brien as Gringoire
Alan Marshal as Phoebus
Walter Hampden as Archdeacon
Harry Davenport as King Louis XI
Katharine Alexander as Madame de Lys
Helene Whitney as Fleur de Lys

[edit] Award nominations

Academy Award for Best Music, Scoring (Alfred Newman)
Best Sound, Recording (John Aalberg)

[edit] External links

The Hunchback of Notre Dame at the Internet Movie Database

v • d • e The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo

Characters	Esmeralda • Esmeralda (Disney) • Claude Frollo • Claude Frollo (Disney) Quasimodo • Captain Phoebus • Clopin Trouillefou • Pierre Gringore

Films	Esmeralda (1905) • The Darling of Paris (1917) • The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) • The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) Notre Dame de Paris (1956) • The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1982) Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996) • The Hunchback (1997) • Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame II (2002)

Other Adaptations	La Esmeralda (1844 ballet) • Notre Dame de Paris (1998 musical) • Der Glöckner von Notre Dame (1999 musical)