How much is disney's version of "the hunchback of notre dame" like the actual book?

Question

i understand that the book is a french novel of the 1800's and the disney movie is a disney movie

but how similar are they?

for people who know both

Answer 1

The two are extremely different, as are most books and their Disney film versions.

In the book, Quasimodo is a truly hideous, depressed person who has been deafened (quite literally) by the bells in his tower.  He loves Esmeralda because she was probably one of the first people to be truly kind to him.  However, in the film, he's portrayed more like a slightly ugly teen with low self-esteem problems.

In the book, the character of Frollo is a corrupt cleric; the film turns him into a corrupt magistrate.

Clopin is not just a jester of the Festival of Fools in the novel, rather, he is a protector of the outcasts.  As far as I remember from the film (and correct me if I'm wrong) his death scene is totally cut out.

Phoebus does NOT have a friendly relationship with the outcasts (gypsies).

The book’s climax has Quasimodo barricaded inside the cathedral aganist the city militia; the movie totally morphed it with the gargoyles (who did not exist in the book) shooting out stones at the city militia like machine-gun bullets.

The book's ending included Esmeralda and Quasimodo (and If I recall this correctly, Phoebus as well) dying, but in the film, everyone lives happily ever after and Quasimodo learns that the world can accept him despite his appearance.

There are so many differences between the book and this movie version, but some things do stay the same; for example, Quasimodo still falls for Esmerelda, though she loves one of the king's guards, Phoebus.  Also, Frollo still lusts for Esmeralda and when she does not return his "love," he hates gypsies even more.

As I said in the beginning, novels and their Disney versions can be quite different.  In the case of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the central theme stayed the same (Quasimodo, a hideous man, falls for Esmeralda, who then falls for Phoebus, but meanwhile, Frollo...etc) but many characters and subplots are changed or completely edited out.