A Night at the Cathedral of Notre Dame

Source: http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Notre_Dame_Cathedral.html

Yesterday evening, after a delightful day of relaxation, my sister and two of my brothers and I stayed up late watching old films on television. These included Ghosts -- Italian Style (which I found first funny, then disturbing), H.M. Pulham, Esq., Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House with Cary Grant and Myrna Loy, one most sentimental tale of two sisters who become nurses (we only saw the end), and The Hunchback of Notre Dame with Charles Laughton and Maureen O'Hara.

I was most impressed with The Hunchback of Notre Dame. It isn't too morbid or unhealthy, I think, and the characters, the scenes, and the setting had a great richness about them. Perhaps it was simply the late hour, but the Gothic sculpture on the cathedral, the grand views, and the shot of the light filtering through into the nave had a strong effect on me -- particularly when a church choir was singing in the background. I wish that there would have been time to develop the relations between the characters at a more believable pace, but that is really my only quibble. One other thing that particularly resonated with me is the way that Quasimodo and his situation embodied the self-hatred and and loneliness and awkwardness and sorrow that I've felt throughout the years (particularly as a relative outcast in school). But there was something indescribably comforting in the film: the unfolding of the inner beauty of Quasimodo, and the final resolution of the tumult of emotions into the quieter waters of a dignified melancholy. Also, of course, the film puts things into perspective.