A ‘Hunch’ There May Be Criticism

Prepare for the onslaught, the one that seems to happen every time Disney releases a big animated feature. When its latest, “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” hits the big screen June 21, look for someone to flog the studio over some politically incorrect issue or problematic subtext.

A few exhibitors and executives at competing studios are already envisioning parent or activist groups raising a stir about certain images or themes in Disney’s 34th full-length animated film.

“This could be a tough one. Basically you have a child [Quasimodo] held captive. Then there’s that whole handicap, societal misfit aspect,” says one top executive at rival Universal Studios. “But you know Disney, if there’s a way to sell it, they’ll figure it out. They’ve certainly tread this path many times before . . . and quite successfully.”

Disney’s G-rated retelling of the Victor Hugo classic has Quasimodo, the lonely, disfigured bell-ringer, confined to a tower, banned from society by his nasty surrogate father and befriended only by a trio of gargoyles. When Quasimodo finally does muster the courage to venture into town, he meets and falls for the enchanting gypsy Esmeralda. A love triangle ensues, as well as many acts of thuggery, defiance, heroism and cathedral-climbing.

“The story is pretty dark and deals with murder and imprisonment from the beginning. You have the baby [Quasimodo] snatched away from the mother, then almost murdered as well,” said one executive with the Cineplex Odeon theater chain. “And then there’s this one part where [surrogate father] Frollo is watching the fire and the flames start to dance. But the flames are the image of Esmeralda’s body, which some people around here considered a bit provocative. Personally, I thought it was beautifully done and a wonderful story. But there could be a bit of heat on this. It may be a bit too heavy for its targeted young audience.”

Yet Disney has a history of weathering such criticism with little lasting damage, dating back to its first full-length cartoon.

This is, after all, the studio that cut out the heart of a deer (“Snow White,” 1937), killed Bambi’s mother (“Bambi,” 1942), spotlighted wicked step-relatives (“Cinderella,” 1950), hinted at puppy slaughter (“101 Dalmatians,” 1961), glamorized parental defiance (“The Little Mermaid,” 1989), stereotyped Arabs (“Aladdin,” 1992), trampled a lion cub’s father (“The Lion King,” 1994) and presented a Native American woman from history as a swan-diving Barbie (“Pocahontas,” 1995)--and emerged more successful than ever.

“We know that someone will always take issue with something,” says Peter Schneider, president of Disney’s feature animation division. “But we just deal with that when it comes along. We never grapple over whether someone will take issue with something or not. It’s all about telling the tale.”

It’s all about good overcoming evil, says Dick Cook, head of Disney/Buena Vista distribution. “That is the theme running through every Disney movie.

“I think children are equipped to deal with what some see as the heavier issues in life at their own level. That is the reason these films become classic. Really, children see these films for the entertainment value.”

One of the reasons Cook believes Disney movies are evergreen is that they are universal in theme. “Frankly it’s the reason they can be translated into 60 different languages and play so well, because regardless of the culture or the country, there is something very human about each one of these movies. They strike a chord.”

But Disney has boundaries. “The villain in ‘Hunchback’ is more complex, more conniving, more sensual,” Schneider concedes. “We also explore the love triangle and at some level show the difference between puppy love [Quasimodo’s yearning for Esmeralda] vs. true love [Phoebus and Esmeralda].” Yet Schneider is quick to note, “Gratuitous sex and violence have no place in a Disney movie.

“Usually the biggest issue is parents and how they are depicted. We get asked ‘Why no mothers?’ ‘Why no normal parents?’ In some sense, you can’t have drama without dysfunctionality. That is not to say every family is like this,” he says. “Some people may differ, but to me ‘Hunchback’ is not about that. It is about how we all want to be heroic. It’s that whole Superman idea that we all secretly harbor to save the day, no matter what we look like or who we are,” says Schneider. “In this case, it’s a little problematic guy to society who gets that shot.”