Jim on Film
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Another musical highlight of the film is God Help the Outcasts, the prayer Esmeralda sings while trapped in the cathedral. It ingeniously establishes her motivating drive without ever stating it directly. Throughout the film, she is concerned with the plight of the lower class of the Paris streets, and in this song, she asks for help from God, and looking into the eyes of a baby Jesus statue, she connects with His outcast status while on earth. In one of the final images of the song, and one of the many breath-taking images in the film, she looks into the giant circular picture window, and in its reflection onto her, we see the touch of God upon her. It is in the final moments of the film, when the gypsies and Quasimodo, the ultimate outcast, are finally victorious that her prayer is answered.
This stained glass image plays a role in further developing this theme within the film, and it is also one of its significant images. When Frollo kills Quasimodo's mother, the Archdeacon tells him that he cannot hide what he's done from "the very eyes of Notre Dame,� establishing the cathedral as a representation of Christ himself, the eyes of the statues turning to convict Frollo of his sin. And when Frollo begins Hellfire, pleading, "Beata Maria� (which means, according to the liner notes of the soundtrack, Blessed Mary), he is looking at Notre Dame from the window of his Palace of Justice. In addition to this, the giant cathedral window, as seen during Esmeralda's prayer and during the Archdeacon's prayers before Hellfire, is formed around an image of Mary holding a Christ child in her arms, the child's face in the very center of whole structure, furthering this connection.
The lyrics adapted from Latin by Stephen Schwartz also give interpretive focus in other scenes than the one discussed above. For example, in following the English translations of the Latin lyrics identified as Sanctuary on the CD, the subject of the lyrics, which begin with faith in the Lord and calling for strength as "Our enemies besiege us,� climaxes so that, as Quasimodo lifts Esmeralda high to proclaim "Sanctuary,� the Latin chorus proclaims, "Glory, glory forever/Holy, holy in the highest.� While Quasimodo and Phoebus are not associated with any strong religious belief and Esmeralda only a little more so, because of the Latin lyrics, the forces of God are on their side, commenting on and responding to what the characters are experiencing, including praising God for their success. These Latin lyrics impress the idea that God has heard Esmeralda's prayer and is, indeed, helping the outcasts. The outcasts, with their sense of justice, love, and peace, illustrate the Godly traits.
Finally, Frollo, who began toying with sin until he lost control and it toyed with him, proclaims his own judgment. He stands upon a protruding gargoyle, and with sword in hand, he is ready to send Quasimodo to his death. As he proclaims, "And He shall smite the wicked and plunge them into the fiery pit,� the prophecy comes true. God does smite him. As the gargoyle cracks beneath his feet, its face lights up, and Frollo receives his judgment. The last vision of Frollo is that of a demon plunging him into a fiery pit, a just judgment for an unjust judge.
Because of the filmmaker's heavy use of religious imagery and character motivations, the film ascends to a theme beyond good and evil. Through the establishment of the cathedral as a representation of God, including in the giant picture window which blesses Esmeralda, as well as the commentary of the Latin chorus, and the final judgment for Frollo, a Godly person is defined through the actions and personalities of Quasimodo (meek, trusting, childlike), Esmeralda (compassionate, courageous), Phoebus (brave, moral), and the Archdeacon (forgiving, forgiven).
In analyzing The Hunchback of Notre Dame, it is difficult to dissect the film to look at its different parts because the vision of the filmmakers was so unified. In analyzing theme, the viewer has to pull in the music, and in analyzing the music, the viewer has to pull in the visuals, and so on.
Perhaps this is why, it has been said by many, the film feels like one continuous musical scene, as if there was one song that never stopped. Much of this comes from Menken's majestic and soaring music and underscore, but Schwartz's use of adapted Latin lyrics to comment on the action in the film adds to that music, giving it an ethereal, spiritual quality.
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Margaret Kerry and Diane Disney Miller at the Walt Disney Family Museum
Posted: 11/21/09
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