JAN Entertainment
Rated G
lthough a backlash against
Disney animation is due, it
will have to be postponed.
Amte r a string of hits — The
Little Mermaid, Beauty and the
Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King
and Pocahontas —critics are anx-
ious to have a flop to flog.
Well, The Hunchback of Notre
Dame will take no such abuse.
Disney's animation team has
done it again — taken a classic
story, added their special touch-
es and vividly retooled it to play
to a new generation.
With the possible exception of
Lyle Lovett and Julia Roberts,
think of Quasimodo and Esmer-
alda as filmdom's most mis-
matched couple. They have been
portrayed many times: in the
silent era by Lon Chaney and
Patsy Ruth Miller (1923) through
the Hallmark television version
starring Sir Anthony Hopkins trio of gargoyles — Victor, Hugo
and Lesley-Anne Down (1982). and Laverne — who come to life
In this animated rendition, they when no one else is around. Their
are aptly voiced by sincere Tom antics are just as enchanting as
Hulce (Amadeus) and firebrand those of any of Disney's previous
anthropomorphic sidekicks. They
Demi Moore (Disclosure).
Adults will appreciate the plot, encourage Quasi to leave the
which is advanced through lyri- cathedral and take part in the
cally sophisticated songs by Alan festival: "Life is not a spectator
sport."
Menken and Steven Schwartz.
By doing so, he disobeys his
The kids can easily follow the
story through appealing charac- adoptive father, Frollo, the min-
ister of justice. Quasi's mis-
ters, detailed scenery and
behavior ultimately leads
dazzling animation Crit-
M a y IES
to a confrontation be-
ics should listen no fur-
tween Frollo and the
ther than the beautiful
"Out There," surely to be nomi- dancer Esmeralda, a Gypsy who
represents "heathen ways ... out-
nated for an Academy Award.
Quasimodo cavorts, swings side the normal order." She rec-
and surfs on the cathedral's fly- ognizes Frollo's zealot-like
ing buttresses, railings and gar- imperiousness and is brave and
goyles as he sings about the brazen enough to rebel against so-
wonders of the outside world of cial injustice while protecting Qua-
Paris. He yearns to be among the simodo.
In reality, Frollo, Quasimodo,
common street people below and
and Phoebus, captain of the
take part in the Festival of Fools.
Quasimodo's playmates are a guard, all fall in love with Es-
meralda. Phoebus is torn be-
tween duty and romantic love.
Quasimodo is torn between mis-
placed loyalty to his obsessive
stepfather and empathetic love.
Frollo is torn between his scorn
of the Gypsies and his lust.
How this complex quadrangle
is resolved is testimony to the ge-
nius of Disney storytelling. It's a
great tale about more than just
the physiognomically challenged.
All characters receive their just
rewards, and the audience is
treated to a rousing ending that
will provoke cheers.
When Quasimodo, the recluse bell-ringer of Notre Dame, ventures from his bell
tower, he meets up with Esmeralda, and the antics begin.
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WHAT WE THINK
2 Bagels
Moll Flanders
Welcome to the Dollhouse 2 Bagels
2 Bagels
The Phantom
1 1/2 Bagels
Eddie
4 Bagels
The Rock
2 1/2 Bagels
Mission Impossible
3 1/2 Bagels
Twister
3 1/2 Bagels
Cold Comfort Farm
'The Cable Guy'
Chip has the upper hand. When
Steve is a good friend, Chip helps
him. But when Steve is a bad
im Carrey is the atomic bomb friend, well, all hell breaks loose.
of comedy. So much potential, Paralleling the action throughout
so much power that no one in the film is the satirical murder tri-
his right mind would ever al of fratricidal Sam Sweet (Ben
hope to test him to his limit. His Stiller), which, of course, has the
movies, though, have been un- entire nation riveted to its TV
even: Ace Ventura had the thrill screens.
of a firecracker while Dumb and
The performances: If you enjoy
Dumber was pretty much a dud.
Carrey's schtick, this film
In his Carrey-feature,
might give you a hernia.
The Cable Guy, could
Chip is kind of a mix be-
MOVIES
young director Ben
tween Ace and the Riddler,
Stiller have the courage to
enabling Carrey to use his
unveil the full comic force of a ge- volatile unpredictability to evoke
nius/madman.?
both laughs and tremors. Brod-
The Cable Guy is broad physi- erick plays the classic straight
cal humor wrapped loosely in a man. Although a far cry from his
psychological thriller with a social Glory days as Ferris Bueller, his
message — or maybe vice versa. performance serve its purpose: to
The premise: After getting kicked let Carrey dominate the screen.
out of his girlfriend's apartment
PG-13
j
PHOTO BY MELINDA SU E GOR DON
'The Hunchback of Notre Dame'
As Matthew Broderick finds out in The Cable Guy, don't mess with Jim Garrey.
for proposing marriage, Steve Ko-
vacs (Matthew Broderick) has to
pick up the pieces of his shattered
life in a new locale. The first order
of business, of course, is to install
cable. Word is, if you slip the ca-
ble guy $50, you'll get all the movie
channels for free.
But cable guy Chip Douglas
(Carrey), with a name that should
sound familiar to TV fanatics,
does not want money. He wants
a friend. It sounds like a fair trade
to Steve — movie channels for
friendship. To Chip, however,
friendship is much more than a
cordial business relationship. It is
a commitment.
You see, Chip never had a fam-
ily life or friends as a kid. Instead,
he grew up with TV, sucking the
life out of such shows as "My
Three Sons." Steve, on the other
hand, has everything Chip's ever
wanted. So Chip won't leave Steve
alone, and the two men's lives be-
come hopelessly intertwined.
And it soon becomes clear that
The problem: Where this movie
fails is in its attempt to expound
upon the ills of TV. Moral mes-
sages in a Carrey movie are like
articles in a Playboy magazine:
superfluous. They are also fetters
on a comic genius that can only be
fully displayed in free-form hys-
teria, a level that this movie ap-
proaches but can never quite
reach.
The conclusion: This movie is
not Carrey's A-bomb performance.
But it is funny.
— Dan Zimmerman
Bagel Barometer
Outstanding
10(42 )Q.,,.. ) ® ,
/0c!).
ck)
*.
,)
Very Good
Good
Fair