I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

This movie has everything.A great script - which adapts Victor Hugo's classic novel about intolerance for difference as a tale of the German persecution of the Jews under Hitler. Victor Hugo's novel, like the rest of his best work, played off powerful contrasts, beauty and ugliness, goodness and evil. This movie knows how to make use of those strong oppositions very effectively.Some great acting, principally that by Charles Laughton, certainly, but also Thomas Mitchell - who had a great year in 1939 - and several of the other supporting players.The camera work and the lighting is often astoundingly effective and creative. Even as a silent movie this would be very powerful.I don't know how many times I have seen this movie. But each time I see it, I marvel at the quality of the craftsmanship.

In 15th century France, a gypsy girl (Maureen O'Hara) is framed for murder by the infatuated Chief Justice, and only the deformed bell-ringer (Charles Laughton) of Notre Dame Cathedral can save her.Frank S. Nugent of The New York Times wrote a mostly negative review of the film, finding it "little more" than "a freak show". Though he acknowledged it was "handsome enough of production and its cast is expert," he called it "almost unrelievedly brutal and without the saving grace of unreality which makes Frankenstein's horrors a little comic." Nugent has his opinion, but time has sided against him. This incarnation of "Hunchback" is now widely considered the best. And although it pains me to say that anyone could beat Lon Chaney, Laughton does a fine enough job... maybe not surpassing Chaney, but at least being a suitable replacement for this version... with sound, everything is a little more epic.

earth is flat "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" was obviously a quality production. After all, it has some dandy actors (such as Cederic Hardwicke, Henry Davenport, Edmond O'Brien, Thomas Mitchell, Laughton and Maureen O'Hara), nice costumes and lovely sets that must have cost a fortune. And, it's also a lot more watchable than the old silent version with Lon Chaney, Sr.--so I do recommend you watch it. However, I do have one reservation--it plays very fast and loose with the original story by Victor Hugo. In Hugo's version, the story is not a nice tale with a happy ending. No, pretty much everyone dies and it's a downer! But, only Hollywood would think to 'happify' it!! It's a shame, as the film had a lot going for it--including Charles Laughton's lovely performance as poor 'ol Quasimodo.Oh, and the history teacher in me feels compelled to object to a statement early in the film that everyone thought the Earth was flat back in the 15th century. This is a myth--and people DID know that the planet was round. I could go on and on explaining it, but if you really care, do an internet search using the terms 'flat earth myth' and you'll see what I mean. They knew the Earth was round even in ancient times--and the folks in the Middle Ages and Renaissance weren't nearly as stupid as we'd like to imagine.

Now THIS is a MOVIE! Don't over-analyze, just revel in it. The texture of this film is incredibly deep, showing exactly how effective black and white could be. I always feel like I'm time-traveling when I watch this movie. Charles Laughton, of course, is spectacular - he was a gifted actor with a singular vision. Maureen O'Hara -stunning. Edmond O'Brien (who I adore) - at 24 he's as beautiful as she is! Together they are breathtaking. Not a Thomas Mitchell fan, but I have to admit he's perfect here. The last shot is truly amazing. Never again in the history of movies has the stable of character actors been so rich as it was in 1939. To paraphrase Norma Desmond, they made movies then! Enjoy enjoy enjoy!