Der Glöckner von Notre Dame (1996)

Der Glöckner von Notre Dame: Directed by Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise. With Jason Alexander, Mary Kay Bergman, Corey Burton, Jim Cummings. A deformed bell-ringer must assert his independence from a vicious government minister in order to help his friend, a gypsy dancer.

“A risky wedding of wholesome classic animation, to adult and often dark-themed material. The risk paid off and the result is one of the greatest achievements of Disney Studios.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe animation here is first rate and the entire thing is shot like a live-action film with some incredible long shots, great theatrical panning and even at one point, during Quasimodou0026#39;s song u0026quot;Out Thereu0026quot; a realistic camera flare (I did a double take the first time I saw it!) Hunchback is filled with all sorts of great u0026quot;tricksu0026quot; like this. Lighting effects here are nothing short of magnificent – often subtle they sometimes change in an instant dramatically altering the mood of the piece. Frodou0026#39;s demonic song u0026quot;Hellfireu0026quot; is perhaps one the most sinister and frightening moments to emerge from Disney and the animators let loose. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe prologue to the movie alone is a minor masterpiece and, like Beauty and the Beast, marvelously prepares us for the whirlwind of a story to take place.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe complaints about the singing and dancing gargoyles Victor, Hugo and Laverne, are simply wrongheaded. I read the Hugo classic too, and know theyu0026#39;re not in there. What the complainants fail to realize is these gargoyles live only in Quasimodou0026#39;s imagination. He invented these companions to ease an otherwise tortured, lonely, friendless life. The culmination of all of this becomes obvious in the spectacular song u0026quot;A guy like youu0026quot; which finishes with pigeons flying and hearts and banners and ribbons and Quasimodo being celebrated and then BAM immediately upon the conclusion of the final notes, the room becomes the same dark, dank, splintering tower filled with relics, junk and heartbreak. Itu0026#39;s one of the movieu0026#39;s most shattering effects. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhile deserved praise goes to the animators and crew, the voice talent here is, in my opinion, Disneyu0026#39;s very best. Tom Hulce goes to the very soul of Quasimodo and gives a performance that is as poignant and shattering as anything he has done (Hulce also happened to be the best Hamlet Iu0026#39;ve ever seen.) Certain lines (u0026quot;I am a monster, you knowu0026quot;) will ring in my ear forever. Hulce has a beautiful voice and renders u0026quot;Out thereu0026quot; with such abandon and vigor it makes my hair stand on end. In the quiet u0026quot;Heavenu0026#39;s lightu0026quot; (which sequences into a stunning shot of the bells frantically ringing the opening theme), Hulce brings a fragility to such lines as u0026quot;no face as hideous as my face, was ever meant for Heavenu0026#39;s lightu0026quot; that only a heart of stone would not be moved. Switching from pathos to rage, Hulce lets us feel the hidden rage and danger that this character also possesses. It is a truly remarkable performance.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDemi Moore, Kevin Kline, Tony Jay, Paul Kandel – and the rest of the cast all sound at the top of their game creating wonderful and vivid characters. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAlan Menkin and Stephen Schwartz get to the heart of the matter with score and songs – a sound – that are as integral a part of the telling of this story as the animation and voices. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eHunchback is a miracle of a movie!”