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I watched this film, or at least some of it, over ten years ago, but I can't remember much, so it feels like watching a new film.
What year is this set in? ::is trying unsuccessfully to guess by costumes::
Why do all the male gypsies look like Inigo Montoya? ( running thoughts and reactions )
OVERALL: [SPOILERS!]
I wish I had rented and watched it in widescreen to really appreciate the gorgeous backgrounds of the city, but I still got a good kick out of them in small-screen.
Story wise it's not my favorite plotline, but in terms of scope and ambition the writers and animators deserve an applause. They took dark material and committed to it. I respect that.
Character wiise, I loved Quasimodo and I appreciated that we saw him as a fully-developed character, flaws and nobility. I also liked Esmeralda quite a bit (though she got dragged around by the male characters as a helpless body at the end), and Phoebus was a Disney prince in the traditional Sleeping Beauty mold: he is noble and true and never gets in the way too much. Also, I love Kevin Kline.
Clopin, the puppeteer / King of the Court of Miracles, was entertaining in the way of typical Disney narrators. I liked the animation and musical style for him, as well, and I liked that he was funny but also threatening later. It goes with the theme that each character wears a mask, and that there are many sides to a person. Phoebus is good at heart but still participates in oppressing the people. Quasimodo is good and sincere, but has to learn the difference between being selfish and being generous not just to the people you care about, but to those you don't (a natural extension of having social interaction for the first time.) Esmeralda is a dancer, but only to "put bread on the table." Frollo's mask is so obvious and overworked in the story it's not worth reiterating. I wish they'd made him a little more human and shaded, but I guess if we sympathized with him at all we wouldn't be allowed to see him fall to fire.
On music: rare for a Disney film, I like the score (and choir) better than the actual character songs. I don't dislike them, but they didn't stick much (except, ironically, Frollo's song, and The Court of Miracles, brief as it.) I like the continuity of the music in this film-- from the cathedral to Frollo to the gypsies, it all has the same core. Especially the cathedral's music (which is also the music of the city as a whole.) The puppeteer's introduction song "The Bells of Notre Dame" is very similar to the song that opened Aladdin in style, but I liked this one better. While it's not as sing-able and catchy as "Arabian Nights" (and less racist), I appreciate the artistry of it more. It's more artistic. I probably won't remember it, though. Musically, I have to give props to the singers/voice actors for Frollo and Clopin. And the choir; they were pretty snazzy too.
What year is this set in? ::is trying unsuccessfully to guess by costumes::
Why do all the male gypsies look like Inigo Montoya? ( running thoughts and reactions )
OVERALL: [SPOILERS!]
I wish I had rented and watched it in widescreen to really appreciate the gorgeous backgrounds of the city, but I still got a good kick out of them in small-screen.
Story wise it's not my favorite plotline, but in terms of scope and ambition the writers and animators deserve an applause. They took dark material and committed to it. I respect that.
Character wiise, I loved Quasimodo and I appreciated that we saw him as a fully-developed character, flaws and nobility. I also liked Esmeralda quite a bit (though she got dragged around by the male characters as a helpless body at the end), and Phoebus was a Disney prince in the traditional Sleeping Beauty mold: he is noble and true and never gets in the way too much. Also, I love Kevin Kline.
Clopin, the puppeteer / King of the Court of Miracles, was entertaining in the way of typical Disney narrators. I liked the animation and musical style for him, as well, and I liked that he was funny but also threatening later. It goes with the theme that each character wears a mask, and that there are many sides to a person. Phoebus is good at heart but still participates in oppressing the people. Quasimodo is good and sincere, but has to learn the difference between being selfish and being generous not just to the people you care about, but to those you don't (a natural extension of having social interaction for the first time.) Esmeralda is a dancer, but only to "put bread on the table." Frollo's mask is so obvious and overworked in the story it's not worth reiterating. I wish they'd made him a little more human and shaded, but I guess if we sympathized with him at all we wouldn't be allowed to see him fall to fire.
On music: rare for a Disney film, I like the score (and choir) better than the actual character songs. I don't dislike them, but they didn't stick much (except, ironically, Frollo's song, and The Court of Miracles, brief as it.) I like the continuity of the music in this film-- from the cathedral to Frollo to the gypsies, it all has the same core. Especially the cathedral's music (which is also the music of the city as a whole.) The puppeteer's introduction song "The Bells of Notre Dame" is very similar to the song that opened Aladdin in style, but I liked this one better. While it's not as sing-able and catchy as "Arabian Nights" (and less racist), I appreciate the artistry of it more. It's more artistic. I probably won't remember it, though. Musically, I have to give props to the singers/voice actors for Frollo and Clopin. And the choir; they were pretty snazzy too.
