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. Esmeralda and Quasimodo remain alive at the end, unlike the novel, in which both die. Phoebus, who is only wounded by Claude Frollo in the novel, is killed by him in this...
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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. Esmeralda and Quasimodo remain alive at the end, unlike the novel, in which both die. Phoebus, who is only wounded by Claude Frollo in the novel, is killed by him in this film version; therefore, Esmeralda is arrested and sentenced to hang for murder, not attempted murder.
The story is fictional, but some real-life characters appear in it. The film is set in medieval Paris, France, and tells the tragic tale of a disfigured cathedral bell ringer who falls for the beautiful gypsy, Esmeralda. She, in turn, is in love with Captain Phoebus (Alan Marshal), who sees her only as a temporary distraction. The one other person who truly loves her is the real-life poet Pierre Gringoire (Edmond O'Brien), whom Esmeralda has...
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