Lon Chaney as Quasimodo and Patsy Ruth Miller as Esmeralda.

This silent screen version of the often filmed novel by Victor Hugo remains a powerfully entertaining movie nearly 90 years after its release. Lon Chaney gives another of his brilliant performances as the grotesque bell ringer Quasimodo, the so-called Hunchback of Notre Dame. He is deaf and half blind; his only joy in life is ringing the cathedral bells.

Chaney wore a fake “dead” eye, a wig, a putty nose, a plaster hump and braces on his legs that reportedly caused him problems for the rest of his short life. All in a days work for this incredibly dedicated actor. Still for all the make-up and props it is the way Chaney hobbles around, constantly licking his lips and grimacing that makes his Quasimodo so memorable. He never relies on those outward trappings to carry the part and manages to convey real emotion in several scenes.

Set in 15th Century Paris, ten years before Columbus discovered America, Hunchback personifies the word Gothic. It begins on the annual Festival of Fools. The one day when the oppressed subjects of King Louis XI’s tyranny get to let loose and have some fun. Quasimodo gets crowned King of the Fools during the revelry.

The central characters get introduced one by one. There are two priest brothers; one is noble and the other corrupt. There is Clopin the leader of the peasants and Phoebus the dashing Captain of the Guard. Then of course there is Esmeralda the gypsy orphan girl raised by Clopin who gets caught between the commoners and her love for the aristocratic Phoebus. She is the sun around which the other characters revolve.

The cathedral set is massive and remained standing until it burned down in 1967. Over 750 technicians worked on this movie and Hollywood legend has it that many of the female extras in the crowd scenes were prostitutes recruited from downtown Los Angeles. Further legend has it that they did a bustling side business in-between scenes.

The story builds to a thrilling climax. I won’t give away details. Anyone unfamiliar with the story will have to watch the movie to find out what happens. Ten to fifteen minutes of the original print are lost but not enough to hurt the story. The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a masterpiece of early American cinema.
 

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