 |
| Film poster |
adaptation. All previous film versions are either incomplete or completely lost. It was the film that launched Lon Chaney into the public eye and it helped to legitimize Universal as more than just a 'B' grade movie Studio.
Hunchback led to Universal pursuing similar vehicles, like The Phantom of the Opera in 1925. Phantom's success resulted in more macabre stories like it. Without Hunchback, the Universal monster movies of the 1930s would have never happened, and the Universal of today might not have happened. Its influence is enormous.
It was remade by RKO studios in 1939, with Charles Laughton playing Quasimodo.
The film has been in the public domain since around 1951, and is readily available today. You could legally watch it online. There are dozens of DVD releases, most in very low quality, and a recent Blu-ray transfer. The version that I will be using as a reference is the Image Entertainment Ultimate Edition from 2007. The image is remastered and a new symphonic score has been added. On top of that, an audio essay by Lon Chaney expert Micheal F Blake as well as a replica of a souvenir program that was printed during the film's release is included.
Next: The Plot
No comments:
Post a Comment