Few will argue with the contention that RKO Radio's 1939 adaptation of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame was the best of the many screen versions of the Hugo classic. We say this even allowing for certain liberties taken with the source material-liberties calculated by scenarists Sonya Levien and Bruno Frank to draw parallels between 15th century Paris and 20th century Europe. Thus, Claude Frollo (Cedric Hardwicke), the villain of the piece, is no longer merely a religious hypocrite unable to control his own carnal ...
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Few will argue with the contention that RKO Radio's 1939 adaptation of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame was the best of the many screen versions of the Hugo classic. We say this even allowing for certain liberties taken with the source material-liberties calculated by scenarists Sonya Levien and Bruno Frank to draw parallels between 15th century Paris and 20th century Europe. Thus, Claude Frollo (Cedric Hardwicke), the villain of the piece, is no longer merely a religious hypocrite unable to control his own carnal desires. Instead, Frollo is a bush-league Hitler, warning that the invention of the printing press is dangerous in that it will encourage the rabble to think for themselves, and plotting the persecution and destruction of the "undesirable" gypsies. In the same vein, Gringoire the Poet (Edmond O'Brien in his film debut) has been transformed into an agit-prop "Group Theatre" activist, bent on bringing the unvarnished truth to the ignorant Parisians. Many of Hugo's subplots have been dispensed with, the better to concentrate on the grotesquely deformed Quasimodo (Charles Laughton), bell-ringer of Notre Dame Cathedral, and his puppylike loyalty towards imperiled gypsy dancer Esmerelda (Maureen O'Hara, in her first American film appearance). The schism between the haves and have-nots in the walled city of Paris is illustrated in broad, visually dynamic strokes by director William Dieterle. Hal Erickson, Rovi
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Add this copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame [Dvd] to cart. $5.00, good condition, Sold by Salzer's Records rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from ventura, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1998 by Turner Home Ent.
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Seller's Description:
George Zucco, Katharine Alexander, Harry Davenport, Walter Hampden, Alan Marshal, Edmond O'Brien, Thomas Mitchell, Cedric... Good. 1939 Run time: 116. Former rental from iconic video superstore, Salzers Video (1980-2021). Has category and retro video store stickers! All media in excellent condition!
Add this copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame to cart. $5.57, very good condition, Sold by Books From California rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Simi Valley, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1998 by Turner Home Ent.
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George Zucco, Katharine Alexander, Harry Davenport, Walter Hampden, Alan Marshal, Edmond O'Brien, Thomas Mitchell, Cedric... Very good. 1939 Run time: 116. Case has minor wear but disc is in perfect condition. Buy with confidence-Satisfaction Guaranteed!
Add this copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame to cart. $6.39, very good condition, Sold by HPB-Movies rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1998 by Turner Home Ent.
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George Zucco, Katharine Alexander, Harry Davenport, Walter Hampden, Alan Marshal, Edmond O'Brien, Thomas Mitchell, Cedric... Very good. 1939 Run time: 116. Providing great media since 1972. All used discs are inspected and guaranteed. Digital copy/codes may be expired or not included. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!
Add this copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame to cart. $7.99, very good condition, Sold by HPB-Movies rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1998 by Turner Home Ent.
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Seller's Description:
George Zucco, Katharine Alexander, Harry Davenport, Walter Hampden, Alan Marshal, Edmond O'Brien, Thomas Mitchell, Cedric... Very good. 1939 Run time: 116. Providing great media since 1972. All used discs are inspected and guaranteed. Digital copy/codes may be expired or not included. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!
Add this copy of Hunchback of Notre Dame, the (Dvd) (Rpkg) to cart. $10.98, good condition, Sold by Goodwill rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Brooklyn Park, MN, UNITED STATES, published 2010 by RKO Radio Pictures.
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Good. Disc(s) and case show moderate signs of wear and tear. If applicable, digital code may not included. May be missing liner notes/booklet. If applicable, cardboard slipcover may not be included.
Add this copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) to cart. $17.98, like new condition, Sold by BV Books LLC rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Parker, CO, UNITED STATES, published 2010 by WarnerBrothers.
Add this copy of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) to cart. $17.98, very good condition, Sold by HPB-Movies rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 2010 by Turner Home Ent.
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Katharine Alexander, Harry Davenport, Walter Hampden, Thomas Mitchell, Alan Marshal, Edmond O'Brien, Maureen O'Hara, Cedric... Very good. 1997 Run time: 117. Providing great media since 1972. All used discs are inspected and guaranteed. Digital copy/codes may be expired or not included. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!
Add this copy of Hunchback of Notre Dame, the (Bd) [Blu-Ray] to cart. $28.01, new condition, Sold by newtownvideo rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from huntingdon valley, PA, UNITED STATES, published 2015 by Turner Classic Movie.
This black & white, talking version of the "Hunchback of Notre Dame" was quite excellent not only from an acting standpoint but from a set design and costuming standpoint as well. Although the make-up used on Laughton was very, very crude, it was state of the art at the time, and, though a bit disappointing to modern eyes, it was his acting that carried the character, not the make-up, so you could easily ignore the crudity of it (besides it worked quite well in the middle and distance shots, just the close ups and extreme close shots revealed how bad the make-up really was). Addtionally, the plot line of this film differed from the original novel, and also Lon Chaney, Sr.'s earlier silent version, because of the political and social climate in which this movie was shot (Hitler was making himself felt in Europe at the time, human rights were going by the board wherever he conquered, and the screenplay writers decided to use that scenario in their story line), but I thought that plot difference worked in the film's favor and not against it. In all honesty, we actually purchased the DVD because we're big fans of Maureen O'Hara, who died last year, and this was her debut, at age 18, in U.S. films. But we had NO idea when we bought it that we would also discover just what a hottie her co-star, Edmond O'Brien, was in it due to HIS youthful beauty and it being HIS debut in films as well. He was just absolutely gorgeous!!! Hubba-hubba! Sadly, in his maturity he looked more like a craggy overweight old bear, having lost his youthful beauty by the time I became familiar with his work as an actor. Not that he wasn't handsome as he aged but it was obvious he must've drank to excess and smoked too much in his private life because it showed on his face and figure as he aged. But in "Hunchback" he was one real hottie! As well as an exuberant, idealistic, hopeful character with a big heart, if not a lot of brains behind it. And, of course, Charles Laughton as Quasimodo broke my heart on more than one occasion in the film. While Maureen O'Hara was heartbreakingly beautiful, and touchingly naïve, kind and compassionate as the lovely gypsy girl who tempted the wrong man. I would most definitely recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys classic films and the actors, designers, writers and directors who made them classics!
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