The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939 film)  

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The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1939 American romantic drama film starring Charles Laughton and Maureen O'Hara. Directed by William Dieterle and produced by Pandro S. Berman, the film is based on Victor Hugo's 1831 novel.

Plot

Prologue

"With the end of the 15th century, the Middle Ages came to a close. Europe began to see great changes. France, ravaged by a hundred years of war, at last found peace. The people under Louis XI felt free to hope again ~ to dream of progress. But superstition and prejudice often stood in the way, seeking to crush the adventurous spirit of man."

Plot

In Paris during the late Middle Ages, Louis XI, the King of France, and his Chief Justice of Paris, Jehan Frollo, visit a printing shop. Frollo is determined to do everything in his power to protect Paris from anything he sees as evil, including the printing press and gypsies, who at the time are persecuted and prohibited from entering Paris without a permit. That day is Paris' annual celebration, the Feast of Fools. Pierre Gringoire, a poor street poet, does a play in front of an audience until it is interrupted by Clopin, the King of the Beggars. Esmeralda, a young gypsy girl, is seen dancing in front of an audience of people. Quasimodo, the hunchback and bell ringer of Notre Dame Cathedral, is crowned the King of Fools until Frollo catches up to him and takes him back to the church.

While trying to find Louis to speak to him, Esmeralda is caught by a guard for entering Paris without a permit and is being chased after by a couple of soldiers until she seeks safety in Notre Dame, in which the Archbishop of Paris, Frollo's brother Claude, protects her. She prays to the Virgin Mary to help her fellow gypsies only to be confronted by Frollo, who accuses her of being a heathen. Afterwards, she asks Louis to help her people, to which he agrees. Frollo then takes her up to the bell tower where they encounter Quasimodo, of whom she is frightened. As she runs away from the hunchback, Frollo commands Quasimodo to chase after her and kidnap her. Quasimodo catches up to Esmeralda and physically carries her away. Gringoire witnesses all this, and calls out to Captain Phoebus and his guards, who capture Quasimodo just in time. Esmeralda is then saved and starts falling in love with Phoebus. Gringoire later accidentally trespasses the Court of Miracles, and is about to be hanged by the beggars under Clopin's orders until Esmeralda saves him by marrying him. Afterwards, Frollo orders the guards to arrest and round up the gypsy girls to make an inspection in an attempt to find Esmeralda, but realizes that she is not present in the group and releases them.

The next day, Quasimodo is sentenced to be lashed in the square and publicly humiliated afterwards. He then asks the Parisian townspeople for water. Frollo, seeing this, realizes that he can't stop the sentence in time because it already happened, and abandons Quasimodo instead of helping him. However, Esmeralda arrives and gives Quasimodo water, and this awakens the hunchback's love for her.

Later that night, Esmeralda is invited by the nobles to their party. Frollo shows up to the party, where he confesses to Esmeralda his lust for her in a hiding place. Afterwards, she dances with a black goat named Aristotle in front of the nobles and moves away from the crowd with Phoebus to a garden where they share a moment between each other. Frollo then kills Phoebus out of jealousy, and Esmeralda is wrongly accused of his death. Gringoire visits her in the prison cell to console her and tells her that he will help her to get her free. Frollo arrives at Notre Dame where he confesses the crime to his brother, and, knowing that the Archbishop refuses to help him because he is the murderer, intends to sentence Esmeralda to death for it (which he does), saying that she has "bewitched" him.

Gringoire tries to get Esmeralda free by writing an appeal, but fails when the printing press gets destroyed by soldiers under Frollo's orders. He also tries to claim Esmeralda's innocence in the courtroom, but fails again when Frollo orders his soldiers to take him away. Quasimodo also shows up to the courtroom to save Esmeralda by saying that he committed the crime, but also fails by being mocked by the Parisians and dragged away by the soldiers. After Esmeralda is forced under torture to confess to the crime she did not commit, Louis shows up to the courtroom and attempts to help Esmeralda by offering her a trial by ordeal, in which she is blindfolded and must reach out to choose one of two daggers placed on the table before her: her own dagger (which will indicate her guilt if chosen) or Louis's dagger (which will demonstrate her innocence). When Esmeralda chose her dagger, the judgement is against her and Frollo sentences her to be hanged in the gallows. As Esmeralda is being taken in front of Notre Dame to do public penance, the Archbishop claims her innocence and does not allow her to do penance; however, Frollo still orders Esmeralda to be hanged in the gallows. Just as she is about to be hanged, though, Quasimodo saves her by taking her to the cathedral.

When Gringoire and Clopin realize that the nobles are planning to revoke Notre Dame's right of sanctuary, they both try different methods in order to save Esmeralda from hanging. Gringoire writes a pamphlet that will prevent this from happening, and Clopin leads the beggars to storm the cathedral. At the Palace of Justice, Frollo reads the pamphlet to Louis. After seeing a crowd protesting against the removal of Notre Dame's sanctuary law, Louis realizes that the pamphlet is creating public opinion, which can influence kings to make decisions. However, Frollo warns and advises him against public opinion, saying that it is dangerous. After the Archbishop arrives to inform Louis of Notre Dame's attack and that Esmeralda is innocent, Louis demands to know who the real murderer is, to which Frollo confesses his crime to Louis and walks away, leaving Louis shocked. Louis orders Olivier to arrest Frollo and then talks to Gringoire after reading his pamphlet.

Meanwhile, Quasimodo and the guards of Paris fight off Clopin and the beggars. Afterwards, he sees Frollo in the bell tower seeking to harm Esmeralda, and when he comes up, Frollo tries to stop him. Frollo then attempts to kill Quasimodo with a dagger, but Quasimodo, realizing Frollo's evil nature, stops him and in defense for himself and Esmeralda he throws Frollo off the cathedral top, sending him down to his death. Later that morning, Esmeralda is pardoned by the King and freed from hanging due to the success of Gringoire's pamphlet. Her Gypsy people are also finally freed. Then, she comes to truly love Gringoire and leaves with him and a huge cheering crowd out of the public square. Quasimodo sees all this from high on the cathedral and says sadly to a gargoyle, "Why was I not made of stone, like thee?".

Cast

[[File:Maureen O'Hara as Esmerelda 2.jpg|thumb|260px|right|Maureen O'Hara as Esmeralda]]

• Charles Laughton as Quasimodo
• Sir Cedric Hardwicke as Jehan Frollo
• Maureen O'Hara as Esmeralda
• Walter Hampden as Claude Frollo
• Alan Marshal as Captain Phoebus
• Thomas Mitchell as Clopin Trouillefou
• Edmond O'Brien as Pierre Gringoire
• Harry Davenport as Louis XI of France
• Katharine Alexander as Madame de Lys
• George Zucco as Procurator
• Fritz Leiber as Old nobleman
• Etienne Girardot as Doctor
• Helene Whitney as Fleur de Lys
• Mina Gombell as Queen of beggars
• Arthur Hohl as Olivier
• Curt Bois as Student
• George Tobias as Beggar
• Rod La Rocque as Phillippe
• Spencer Charters as Court clerk
• Kathryn Adams as Fleur's companion
• Dianne Hunter as Fleur's companion
• Siegfried Arno as Tailor
• Peter Godfrey as Monk (uncredited)
• Rondo Hatton as Ugly Man (uncredited)
• Paul Newlan as Whipper (uncredited)