RKO Radio Pictures
Not part of a collection.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Impact! Power! Fire! Pathos! Drama!
Paris, France, 1482. Frollo, Chief Justice of benevolent King Louis XI, gets infatuated by the beauty of Esmeralda, a young Romani girl. The hunchback Quasimodo, Frollo's protege and bell-ringer of Notre Dame, lives in peace among the bells in the heights of the immense cathedral until he is involved by the twisted magistrate in his malicious plans to free himself from Esmeralda's alleged spell, which he believes to be the devil's work.
- Original title
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Language
- EN
- Country
- US
- Budget
- $1,800,000
- Revenue
- $6,877,900
CinemaSerf
Jun 22, 2022 · via TMDB
The is a wonderfully evocative version of the timeless Victor Hugo story of love, desire, cruelty and brutality in 1490's Paris. Charles Laughton turns in a tour de force performance as the physically and mentally disabled "Quasimodo" who is feared, loathed and ridiculed by the local population. When a wandering gypsy girl "Esmerelda" (quite possibly Maureen O'Hara's best ever performance) is found guilty of murder he rescues her and gives her sanctuary in the high bell tower of Notre Dame cathedral. Here she is easy prey for the already infatuated "Frollo" - superby depicted by Sir Cedric Hardwicke. What follows is the stuff of great literature adapted with adroit skill and sympathy by Sonya Levein (screenplay) and directed by William Dieterie. The use of light and shadow, Alfred Newman's nimble score and an authentic set (recreated in California) make this by far the best rendering of this story on film.
John Chard
Aug 28, 2014 · via TMDB
Incredible film-making, bravo for real classics. What a truly lavish and gorgeous film this is, thematically it pulls the emotions in different directions, and as a story it's as sharp as a tack. Boasting a quite incredible performance from Charles Laughton as the tragic bell ringer Quasimodo (no nomination Academy, are you flipping sure?), and sets that are simply out of this world, this film to me defines classic cinema. Into the mix we get a radiant Maureen O'Hara as Esmeralda who lights up the screen in every scene she is in, it's a very special performance in view of it being her first lead US turn. However, really the film's triumph lies with its script, a very aware piece of writing encompassing political goings on and the corruption of the church set around the hunchback's tragic love. The make up of Laughton leaves an indelible image when brought into focus with the great detail of the surroundings, and the score is mightily appropriate. All in all this film cost 2 Million Dollars for RKO Studios, one of their most expensive outlays, but they were rewarded in spades as the film was a monster success and here in the modern day age of cinema the film still stands up as a benchmark for great movie making. 9/10
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
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Charles Laughton
The Hunchback Quasimodo
Cedric Hardwicke
Frollo
Thomas Mitchell
Clopin
Maureen O'Hara
Esmeralda
Edmond O'Brien
Gringoire
Alan Marshal
Phoebus
Walter Hampden
Archdeacon
Harry Davenport
King Louis XI
Katharine Alexander
Madame de Lys
George Zucco
Procurator
Fritz Leiber
Old Nobleman
Etienne Girardot
Doctor
Helene Reynolds
Fleur de Lys
Minna Gombell
Queen of Beggars
Arthur Hohl
Olivier
Curt Bois
Student
George Tobias
Beggar
Rod La Rocque
Phillippe
Spencer Charters
Court Clerk
Kathryn Adams
Fleur's Companion #1
Diane Hunter
Fleur's Companion #2
Sig Arno
Tailor
Frank Mills
Beggar (uncredited)
Dewey Robinson
Butcher (uncredited)
Ferdinand Munier
Defense Attorney (uncredited)
Barlowe Borland
Dubois (uncredited)
Victor Kilian
Esmeralda's Hangman (uncredited)
Harry Cording
Guard (uncredited)
Lionel Belmore
Judge at Esmeralda's Trial (uncredited)
Tempe Pigott
Madeleine (uncredited)
Nestor Paiva
Man in Street When Gypsies Arrive (uncredited)
Charlie Hall
Mercury (uncredited)
George Barrows
Minor Role (uncredited)
Peter Godfrey
Monk (uncredited)
Cy Kendall
Nobleman Signing Petition (uncredited)
Charles Halton
Printer (uncredited)
Norbert Schiller
Saturn (uncredited)
Alexander Granach
Soldier (uncredited)
Edmund Cobb
Soldier (uncredited)
Ralph Dunn
Soldier (uncredited)
Eddie Bracken
Soldier at Festival of Fools (uncredited)
John George
Townsman (uncredited)
Kenner G. Kemp
Townsman (uncredited)
Rondo Hatton
Ugly Man (uncredited)
Russ Powell
'Ugly Man' Contestant #2 (uncredited)
Louis Adlon
Venus (uncredited)
Paul Newlan
Whipper (uncredited)
Dick Dickinson
Wooden-Leg Man (uncredited)
Charles Drake
Young Priest (uncredited)
Richard Clayton
Young Priest at Cathedral (uncredited)
Theodore Lorch
Minor Role (uncredited)
Eddie Dew
Minor Role (uncredited)
Margaret McWade
Younger Sister (uncredited)
Jack Perrin
Minor Role (uncredited)
Margaret Seddon
Older Sister (uncredited)
Van Nest Polglase
Art Direction
Walter Plunkett
Costume Designer
Vernon L. Walker
Special Effects
William Dieterle
Director
Robert Wise
Editor
Pandro S. Berman
Producer
Alfred Newman
Original Music Composer
Bruno Frank
Adaptation
Victor Hugo
Novel
Sonya Levien
Screenplay
The Unknown Past
The Beginning and the End
Banat bahari
Cairo 30
Dean Spanley
The Keys of the Kingdom
It's the Heart That Dies Last
Northanger Abbey
The Secret of Moonacre
The Grifters
Tell Me Softly
Force 10 from Navarone
Gigi
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Under The Greenwood Tree
Varg Veum - Buried Dogs
Pride and Prejudice
Butterfly in the Typewriter
The Disease Has Taken the Farmhouse
مجرم تحت الاختبار
Rebecca
Before Sunset
Love Everlasting
The Man in the Moon
A Place in the Sun
Les Misérables
The Postman Always Rings Twice
Tess
Charlie St. Cloud
The Uninvited
Cyrano de Bergerac
Jane Eyre
Wuthering Heights
Not Easily Broken
Rebecca
Winter's Tale
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey
Moll Flanders
Head in the Clouds
To the Wonder
Dec 29, 1939
