Hunchback of Notre Dame

Of all the Disney movies "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" is on an entirely different level. It starts out following a somewhat typical song format. However during this song there is an attack, murder, and arrests. This in and of itself sets it as a darker story that typical Disney stories. Also this has no princesses or princes unlike other movies. The highest ranking hero in the movie would have to be Phoebes, the captain of the Guards. The "princess" or heroine in the movie is a gypsy, Esmeralda. Also this story brings Christianity into it with the song "Hellfire". The use of fear and hate in this film adds to it's unconventional nature of a Disney movie. Although the villain is disposed of the hero and heroine don't marry. Phoebes was at most a supporting hero while Quasimodo was the main hero. It would hold to the typical Disney format for Esmeralda to marry Quasimodo, however she marries Phoebes. I overall consider this choice as a plus since it seems much more realistic. While I wouldn't watch "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" if you are scared easily or have difficulties without light and happy stories it is one of the darker Disney movies. This makes it better by showing how dark the real world is but still giving the audience the happy ending they desire. Another staple of Disney that is present in the movie is the loose connection to another form of media it has. In this case it is based of a Victor Hugo novel which is far darker than the Disney movie and ends in tragedy. I would recommend this movie purely because it shows that Disney was not all fun and games with its animated success, and it was fully able to deal with unpleasantness giving a fresh view of the world to children.