15 Most Underrated Movies Of The 90s
8. The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre Dame isn't underrated in the most obvious sense: the movie was generally well-received by critics, boasting a 74% rating on Rotten Tomatoes with an average score of 7.1/10.
That itself is lower than it should be, but where Hunchback really struggles is within the context of other Disney Animated Classics, and especially those released in the same period. After the dark days of the 1980s, the Renaissance was in full swing from 1989's The Little Mermaid onwards, and the run to The Hunchack of Notre Dame included Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, and Pocahontas.
The Mouse House could do no wrong, and then came this. Hunchback put off adults and kids alike by going much darker than previous Disney movies, but that's why it deserves so much praise. Rarely has a Disney movie been so stunningly complex.
Notre Dame tackles weighty themes, especially with its message on tolerance, which goes alongside its more in-depth character work, and yet it balances that with some utterly gorgeous animation and incredible, catchy songs. With a brilliant, dark story full of pathos but containing just enough light touches to still be Disney, this deserves to be remembered much better among the classics of the era than its reputation suggests.
[JH]