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Film As Notre Dame

     The Hunchback of Notre Dame




1939  NR  DRAMA  1h 56min
CAST— Charles Laughton, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Thomas Mitchell, Maureen O’Hara, Edmond O’Brien, Alan Marshal, Walter Hampden, Harry Davenport, George Zucco, Curt Bois, George Tobias, Rod La Rocque
MUSIC— Alfred Newman  DIRECTOR— William Dieterle  BASED ON— The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (novel), by Victor Hugo

     Charles Laughton gives a standout performance in this version of the Victor Hugo classic. Laughton plays the unfortunate Quasimodo, a misshapen young man living in the cathedral of Notre Dame, tending to the bells and their clappers high above Paris. When a lone gypsy girl named Esmeralda shows pity towards him, he feels a bond between them. She is later accused of being a witch and sentenced to die. But not on Quasimodo’s watch! He makes a heroic rescue and shelters the one person who has shown him loving kindness. A bit overlong but worth it just for Laughton’s performance as the hunchback. Lavish production design and an eye for detail enhance this solid RKO feature.
OUR RATING— ** ½
ORIGINAL— The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923)
REMADE AS— The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1957/1996)