The Hunchback
of Notre Dame
Originally released in 1923
Lon Chaney as Quasimodo
This screen adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel was the movie that set
the standard for Lon Chaney's make-up and opened the door for the horror
genre. The story is about Quasimodo the hunchback who lives in the
bell tower of a cathedral. Quasimodo is hired to kidnap a gypsy named
Esmeralda, but he is caught and sentenced to be flogged. Later, Esmeralda
is wrongfully convicted of murder, and Quasimodo sets out to save her.
The subject of many remakes, this version of The Hunchback of Natre
Dame was the most expensive film produced at the time, costing one
and a quarter million dollars.
L.C. Subject Headings
The following Library of Congress Subject Heading
is for use in searching the on-line catalog for materials pertaining to
The
Hunchback of Notre Dame.
-
Horror Films.
-
Horror Films Catalogs.
-
Horror Films Encyclopedias.
-
Hugo, Victor, 1802-1885.Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Reviews
The New York Times Film Reviews 1913-1968.
Vol. 1, 1913-1931. New York: The New York Times & Arno
Press, 1970.
[Davis Ref: PN 1995. N4 v1]
-
The Hunchback of Notre Dame The Hideous
Bell Ringer, p. 161, Sept. 3, 1923; 9:3.
Variety Film Reviews 1907-1980. Vol.
2, 1921-1925. New York: Garland Publishing Inc., 1983.
[Davis Ref: PN 1995 .V34 v2]
-
The Hunchback of Notre Dame Sept. 6, 1923.
Original Novel
Hugo, Victor. Notre-Dame de Paris.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999. (originally published
in 1831)
[Davis, 7th floor stacks: PQ2288.A35 1999]
Known in English as The Hunchback
of Notre Dame, this version of the Hugo classic was chosen because
there were not many options to consider. One of only two English
versions at Davis Library, this one is a better translation because it
sticks to the original text as best as it can, and Oxford University Press
is a very respectable publisher. There is one other English copy
in UL storage, but it is from 1947, so this more recent publication would
be a better read.
Video
The Hunchback of Notre Dame. New
York, N.Y.: Kino Video, 1990.
[UL NonPrint: 65-V3048]
The movie that defined Lon Chaney as
a master of make-up, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is still as awesome
today as it was when it was released in 1923, almost 80 years ago.
With magnificent sets and a fantastic job by Chaney as Quasimodo, this
film still stands as one of the greatest horror movies ever produced.