One of the best ways to show how this movie is messaging that Esmeralda is more than the performance she is putting is framing how the two drastically different men see her and portray her: Frollo, the obvious villain, fantasises about her as a figure of smoke and fire in an even more exagerated sexy dress than her dancing performance; Quasimodo made her wood figurine as she appears with her everyday outfit, with the goat. Esmeralda isn't sexualised _by the movie_ , the movie specifically frames that she's sexualised by an evil man who is incapable of seeing her as a human and more than an object of desire (because he doesn't think of Romani as people to begin with), while the other man in the movie see her as a kind and compassionate woman and friend. I loved your take on this, informative as well as fun to watch, as always!
I was obsessed with Esmeralda as a little girl in the late 90s. I remember thinking she was so cool. Now, years later she is still probably my favorite out of all disney characters.
same! before Mulan she was my fave hands-down, and she's still way up there. I admit I was Esmeralda for Halloween when I was like 6 or 7, before cosplaying as an ethnicity you didn't belong to was starting to get acknowledged as gauche.
You know, Esmeralda doesn't have to be Disney Princess in order to get recognition. She's already recognizable due to her cunning, fearless, and compassionate personality.
@@BetterWithBob How so she's not a princess, or ever was a princess, she wasn't the daughter of the King of the Gypsys so that makes her just a regular gypsy in the group. And she doesn't marry into royalty, she marries phoebes who is a military man, not a lord or duke or prince. Disney doesn't have to turn every female character in literature into princesses.
@wwozanewmusical Did you even watch this? Bob says at the start that not every girl who is a Disney princess is a princess. The current princess pantheon is: Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Rapunzel, Merida, Moana, and Raya. Yet Belle's father was an inventor. Pocahontas father was a chief but not a king. Moana's father was a chief but not a king. Tiana was just a poor black girl. Mulan's father was just a soldier. Of those five, only Belle and Tiana have the distinction of marrying a Princes. The other three didn't marry at all. Yet they are all included.
As someone with a disability I try not to let it define me. That being said I fell in love with this movie the first time I was able to finish watching it. I saw some of myself in Qusi and this movie asks some really important questions in a very mature way. It may not be the best but it is the deepest Disney film. Also as a Christian I appreciated that it sowed how people misuse Christianity but also the right way to view it and live it.
Oh absolutely. I'm autistic myself and now as I get older I'm beginning to see how much of myself is in Quasimodo too. Another autistic friend of mine said the same
Anybody else remember that Disney Adventures Magazine cover from January 1998 with Pierce Brosnan-era James Bond flanked by Esmeralda, Megara, and Jasmine in action girl karate chip poses? I think that was when I realized I had a thing for Disney Princesses and Bond Girls LOL
I look forward to seeing your video! Just to clarify, I will say that Esmeralda is not a princess because she was not born into royalty, and she did not marry a royal individual. She’s better than a princess. She’s one of the people. One of us! And a virtuous person at that. She is a worthy Disney Lady.
I'm still upset that "God Help the Outcasts" wasn't nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song! "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Musical or Comedy Score! - The only Disney Renaissance film that didn't receive an Oscar nomination is "The Rescuers Down Under" (I believe because it wasn't a musical). It became the first Disney Renaissance film not to receive multiple Oscar nominations, because after this "Hercules", "Mulan", and "Tarzan" each received only one Oscar nomination and to me that showed that the Academy was ready to move on from Disney Renaissance, because the year before the Academy divided the Best Original Score category (again) into two "dramatic score" and "musical or comedy score". This was seen as a response to the dominance of the Disney Renaissance (in the score and song categories), a lot of film studios and film composers were upset that their dramatic scores were losing to Disney scores (a.k.a. Alan Menken) and when Hans Zimmer won for "The Lion King" and knowing "Pocahontas" was coming out they divided the original score into two and "Pocahontas" won musical or comedy score and song. They merged the category back into one in 2000 (after the end of the Disney Renaissance).
@@BetterWithBob Also "Pocahontas" is the last Disney film (animated or live action) to be nominated and win both Best Original Score and Best Original Song in the same year (it wasn't until "Encanto" in 2022 when a Disney film was nominated in both categories)! Only 7 Disney films have won both music categories in the same year: "Pinocchio", "Mary Poppins", "The Little Mermaid", "Beauty and the Beast", "Aladdin", "The Lion King", and "Pocahontas". - I don't think any other film studio achieve such a feat and winning 10 Oscars (in music) between 1990-1996.
Great work as always my friend and we appreciate the shout-out at the end. Good Romani representation remains sadly rare (let alone that played by actors of actual Romani descant). Here's hoping we can play a small part in changing that.
Absolutely adore Hunchback as a film and Esmeralda as a character. She was a huge inspiration to me growing up. I love her complexity and how she always stands up for others in the face of adversity. ❤
fun fact! Esmeralda was designed with purple and green eyes to contrast. lots of disney villains beforehand wore purple and green as part of their design, and it's a meta reference as to how Frollo and first time audiences would initially see her with suspition, only for the movie then show there's more to her, like Quasi. The fact that audiences missed that is kinda sad...
Ooh interesting. I've always loved the contrast between purple and green. And wasn't it a thing that green eyes were considered the mark of supernatural ability? So even more reason for Frollo to consider her a witch
I kind of wish Tiger Lily got more love tbh. Even as demonstrably racist as the Indian characters were in that, I've seen complaints that she was sexualized when she's more covered up than even Wendy - to say nothing of Tinkerbell and the Mermaids. She will never be a part of the franchise for obvious reasons, but Esmeralda's scowling at Frollo while tied to the stake always struck me as reminiscent of Tiger Lily's refusal to back down from Hook while tied to the anchor (she also refuses to give Peter up just as the Roma refuse to give Esmeralda up)
My birthday after Hunchback released, I got dang near every Esmeralda toy my parents were willing to buy me. I absolutely love her, to this day, and still have her doll. Heck, I have a ceramic magnet of her on my fridge right now. She's hands down the best, deepest, and most interesting character ever in a Disney movie. ❤
I've always loved Esmeralda since watching Disney's version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame in my childhood. Years later, I have come to realise how sweet she is, wanting respect for her people and accepting Quasimodo for what he is on the inside, rather than the outside. I'm in that position since I'm autistic. There's loads of different people around the world, depending on their race, religion, gender and disability, who all should be recognised for their personality. And I've made a lot of nice autistic friends because of that. Heck, one of them absolutely loves Esmeralda as well, even agrees she should be a role model for everyone around the world who needs to be respected for their differences, as it's the personality that matters. Just such a huge shame Disney rather put her in the Disney Princess lineup for money, because that's not how she should be seen as; she needs to be seen for her character. And it doesn't help that the bad sequel Disney made that I don't want to talk to about barely acknowledges her! 🙁 Disney, please bring Esmeralda back into the spotlight again, but this time for her selfless personality! That's what makes her a Disney Princess in my eyes! And Megara, Jane Porter, Kida Nedakh, Anna and Elsa all deserve to be Disney Princesses too! 🙂 I will always love Esmeralda, no matter how underrated she is nowadays. Yes, she's so selfless, kind and beautiful, but also inspiring to me. That's what makes her one of my favourite Disney ladies of all time. 🥰 And she could also do with a proper sequel to The Hunchback of Notre Dame as well as a movie all about her, explaining her childhood and her marriage to Phoebus. So many possibilities Disney could do with the franchise.
I have to be honest with everyone that out of all the Disney princesses or all animated females I have seen throughout my lifetime. 💃🏽 I have always loved Esmeralda from Disney's The Hunchback Of Notre Dame as one of my most favorite Disney character or animated heroine of my inner childhood especially since she is so beautiful even as a 'gypsy', what I love about Esmeralda so much it's she have of courage heart and who would defy the villain like Frollo, after all every Disney heroine never stand up against a villain before until Esmeralda did it. 💜 I am proud to say that I have always consider Esmeralda as one of my most favorite Disney character of all time, even I still called her as a best animated heroine too.
Okay I don’t do this often but your analysis is so on point and nuanced without being ham fisted that I kinda had to. Bravo for this incredibly well written video essay
@@BetterWithBobwould you consider doing a Disney princes video please 🙏? I love these analysis of Disney films and the Swan Princess and Anastasia you do such a good analysis and really show another side to the story over the Princess slander and show how they are good characters.
@@BetterWithBobI’d disagree. Its pretty rare for me to find any merch for the film, and the little I’ve seen is focused solely around Esmerelda. Its even worse that the movie doesn’t have any attractions or meetable characters in the parks either
@@kristinahuchison2511 there was a live stage musical for a long long time in the parks, and they do have the stage musical which would be awesome on Broadway.
Something I've grown to appreciate about Disney's Hunchback is that no less than three men fall for Esmerelda and in the end she ends up with the one she chooses. Frollo is your straightforward predator who sees her as an object he deserves to possess. With Quasimodo it's interesting as he's coming from a place where Esmerelda is one of the small handful of people who have ever been genuinely nice to him. In fact she's possibly literally the first woman he's ever spoken to. So Quasimodo is falling for her in a sense that he has absolutely no clue how romantic feelings actually work. But despite him having all the experience and wisdom regarding relationships of basically nada, he still understands that caring about her means letting her go and that she can still love him without wanting him. Hunchback has a lot of themes running through it, and the crowning one at the end is that what makes Quasi a good man (and Frollo the monster) is that good guys don't always end up with the girl (they think) they wanted because ultimately her agency is what matters most of all.
@@BetterWithBob It's especially notable since as captain of the guard, Phoebus comes with a pretty lopsided power dynamic with her that she is understandably wary of at first. She's spent her whole life learning to watch out for herself and take the measure of people. Yet she let's her guard down and concludes maybe he isn't so bad pretty quickly, which gives another point in his favor.
Esmerela just had attitude and I loved her for it. So many Disney princesses learn to stand up for themselves or others but she does it from the get go like she’s lived a life and not the sheltered girls the others mainly give off. Demi Moore was a perfect voice cast
Esmeralda has always been my favourite Disney character (who is not a princess). I also stand my opinion that both she and Pocahontas had the most beautifully made dolls of the 90s ... I had them all. Her green eyes make her stand out from the other Disney ladies and personally, I think she has the most beautiful design of all of them. I was one of the few who loved Hunchback right from its release....I had the dolls, the lunchbox, the bedding....I loved it! I think it is a travesty that Esmeralda and the other characters do not feature more in Disneyland Paris (though they did get a bit of spotlight during the re-opening of Notre Dame Cathedral). She's a great character and deserves more love. 💜✨
I really appreciate that I'm not the only one who has always read Esmeralda as a black-coded character. I've had people admonish me for saying it like its an insult but its really meant as a compliment. Tbh I think another reason she and Kida get brushed under the rug is to firmly establish Tiana (whose skin tone is about as dark as Esme's) to be hailed as the official "first black Disney Princess." I don't hate Tiana but the film spends an inordinate amount of time trying to establish how "strong" she is without doing much to really show it. Yes, she is determined to open a restaurant to honor her father's memory and that's great, but she doesn't have much to say about the overall situation of her community at large (segregation, violence against the communities, the fact that veterans like her father came home from the war to find they still were second class citizens) and doesn't have any big reservations about placating Big Daddy La Boeff and Charlotte (who has developed a fan following that rivals Tiana's ironically) who are the main beneficiaries of said system. And that's fine because you can't change the world and not every white person in the deep South was a horrible person, but where Tiana is working within the system for an economic goal that will benefit herself and her family, Esmeralda is being a voice for the voiceless and speaking truth to power even at great risk to her own life (even her brashness nearly resulted in her people being wiped out by Frollo).
That's why I have so many issues with that film, even though I do appreciate what she means to multiple people and I'm not saying they're not allowed to like her or the film. A fairy tale is meant to take place in a vague 'somewhere' some time ago and be completely fictional, so it doesn't apply to the same rules and laws as our universe, hence Phillip and Aurora falling in love at first sight. But they set The Princess & the Frog in a very specific time and place - New Orleans in 1926 - and they even nodded to segregation existing in the movie's universe, and they don't commit to that. Even the woman Tiana was inspired by (Leah Chase) wanted to open her restaurant to specifically bring food to her community that was only being served at whites only places, and she was a highly political figure, so it's a real missed opportunity. It's not like Disney hadn't tackled racism before - a That's So Raven episode handled it quite respectfully from what I remember
Fun fact I actually was Esmeralda for Halloween I do have a sad story when Hunchback came out I never got an Esmeralda Barbie mom said she was too expensive at Kmart😢
I'm glad you brought up her skin color because I was telling people that Disney is rumored to do a live action remake and I said there are a lot of black people that are going to look at her as a black character Yes she's Romanian but she's also black to a lot of people and I just glad that somebody kind of brought this situation up because a lot of people were trying to attack me for disrespecting Romanians and I'm like I'm not that I'm not saying that there aren't dark skin and Romanians but what I'm saying is since it's a movie that was made in America and she has chocolate skin they're going to want a black person to play her and I think her kida Megra Jane Porter should have been Disney princesses regardless you know. I think now that people know better I think they could make good sales on those characters if they just put a little bit more time and effort behind them
My goodness another amazing in depth piece, ugh I’m always so inspired by your work! (And called out at some moments, cause I too was distracted from the truth of things by the popular narratives of the 2010s…)
I wonder if her skin was darkened (compared to real life romani) to help american audiences...as "white on white" racism is not actively discussed or practised there. (Compared to europe)
Over here casually mentioning 10th Kingdom….i love that movie/TV mini series! You should do a video about it because I honestly don’t know many people that even know what The 10th Kingdom is
I often wonder why people concern themselves with whether a heroine in these films should be considered one of the princesses or not. I get that they feel that it gives them a recognition that they apparently haven't received. But on the other side, we still love them regardless of whether they bear that title or not. The fact that we're discussing them, decades after we first saw them, shows that they have their fans, their audience. And frankly, in a lot of cases, the characters not found in the princess category are a good deal more interesting than those who are, even if the latter's films were more successful at the box office. Having the movies of these characters we like under-perform in their day stings, I understand, but putting this label on them won't suddenly make them gain love from the people who haven't been loving them this whole time :(
Yeah, because Disney actively wanted movies that _could_ succeed, fail. And yes. I am still angry about Treasure Planet, the sci-fi reimagining of Treasure Island.
@BetterWithBob YES! 😭 I know sci-fi and Disney didn't go "hand-in-hand" but the willful campaign against the creators because Disney didn't believe in the project and strung them along, hoping that they would let their dream die, and then releasing the movie with terrible marketing and release date.
@@drgskates Esp when the director duo spent at least 10 years, 5 Disney movies, 2 Disney CEOs begging, sweatshop working to actually get the green light to make much less release their dream movie of Treasure Island in Space then Corporate goes further and cancel the already planned Treasure Planet sequel right at the last second.
Nice video! Personally I’m kinda relieved Esmerelda isn’t in the Disney Princess lineup, especially when you consider how dark skinned characters like Pocahontas and Jasmine get treated, having their skin grossly lightened. Same problem would’ve happened to Kida if she was added to the lineup given her official artwork by the company, completely erasing her dark skin to appear lighter. Pocahontas, Esmerelda and Kida remain some of my favorite characters because they prove they are so much more than just a pretty face who fell in love with a man. Tbh I kinda wish Esmerelda stayed single at the end of the movie, her love story with Phoebus was practically nonexistent and felt incredibly forced and straight up unnecessary (doesn’t help I find Phoebus to be kinda pointless to the narrative aside being a love interest) and its a shame Esmerelda’s reception was a result of Demi Moore’s career at the time, similar to John Smith being played by Mel Gibson, a man who wasn’t particularly invested in the role but accepted it anyway. But anyway, I really enjoyed Esmerelda’s portrayal in the movie despite she does have a pretty stereotypical design as a Romani woman, and I’ve seen videos by Romani UA-camrs explaining why Esmerelda isn’t a good character for Romani representation.
I do find the romance built up enough in-universe, where she's visibly impressed when he stops the soldiers from chasing after her, then gives money to what he thinks is an old beggar woman, and when he tells her how she can claim sanctuary to avoid arrest. And then you see her worried when he goes into the burning mill to save the family - where she clearly fears him not surviving. The attraction is visibly there in the church when she sees that he's treating her with respect, and the burning of the mill would have to be some time later, so she would have had time to think about him And I think it's important for Quasimodo's story as well because it shows how he's different from Frollo, where he accepts that Esmeralda loves someone else and still values her as a friend
@@BetterWithBobI agree its a nice twist that Quasimodo learned to accept Esmerelda didn’t reciprocate his feelings but she still loves him as a friend, but it always gave a very sour taste in my mouth the sexy woman ended up falling in love with the typical hot guy. Come on, we really had to make Esmerelda end up with the hot guy instead? I remember reading somewhere a big reason why Disney made Esmerelda fall in love with Phoebus instead was because: they didn’t want Esmerelda having an ugly boyfriend, especially because she was planned to be added to the Disney Princess lineup. Its a slap in the face to Quasi’s character and basically saying he’s not good enough for Es because he’s extremely ugly. But in the movie’s context Quasi and Es have a lot more development than Es did with Phoebus. If you compare Esmerelda and Phoebus’s screentime and chemistry in comparison to other couples of the Renaissance, they have by far the least amount of interactions. They only have a couple short conversations before the execution scene, so it always made it feel a bit forced as to why Esmerelda fell in love with Phoebus. I’m sorry but it takes a lot more than them cracking jokes and jabs at each other to convince me they’re a cute couple. And maybe it’s just me, but they always felt like a big ripoff of Pocahontas and John Smith, ya know the movie that literally came out before the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Both couples basically have the same dynamic with very few differences, a beautiful dark skinned woman who falls in love with a handsome blonde captain and their stories revolve around the prejudices of the woman’s people. Poca and John have always been one of my favorite couples as a kid, and I really wanted to see Quasi win Esmerelda’s love instead, showing he didn’t need to be normal to win her affection. Instead it became another example of “only hot guys get beautiful girls, plain and average men don’t win no matter how nice and kind they are” And maybe its just me, but it always felt like Phoebus was largely attracted to her beauty. Yes he admires her rebellious spirit and she doesn’t take crap from anyone, especially Frollo, but it always kinda made me confused to why Esmerelda needed a love interest anyway. And as I said it doesn’t help they have the least amount of screentime together in comparison to most other Disney couples, which I get as their love isn’t a big part of the story
Wait, if Esmeralda was switched with Quasimodo as infants that makes Esmeralda Frollo’s niece, since the reason book Frollo takes in Quasimodo and raises him is he believes Quasimodo is his brother’s bastard son. That’s pretty hardcore incest for Disney (aside from Hercules). It could also mean Esmeralda and Quasimodo are actually twins, with the Roma keeping the pretty baby and giving the ugly one to its father. Then again there was a story years ago about a blonde girl who was aggressively seized from a Roma family because she was blonde and people suspected they’d stolen her as an infant and then of course DNA tests to find her real parents found that the Roma couple were her real parents and were just het for blonde hair. So there could have been practical reasons for them wanting to leave the red haired infant with his presumably red haired father beyond just thinking red hair is icky. I’d always thought Pocahontas looked wrong for a Native American and am happy to hear some vindication of that. It’s always been kind of jarring to me because I’ve interacted with enough genuine Natives and am part Native myself. I also know there is at least one portrait of the real Matoaka who looks nothing like the Disney version and don’t know why they couldn’t have used that as a base. Possibly because the real thing was not exactly Hollywood’s idea of pretty and would be more likely to be cast in the role of evil stepsister than Disney Princess.
Hunchback is one of my Top 15 Animated Films and Esmeralda is definitely one of my Top 15 Animated Heroines! If ever there was one deserving of a comeback, it's her!
I always loved Esmeralda and Pocahontas most. They are awesome role models for a little girl. I'm convinced, they had a big influence in my thinking of morality, solidarity, justice and standig up for other people in need. It's a shame that Disney don't give her more attention, because she deserves it.
4:29 literally one of the best episodes (but the cool kids always hate anything to do with S5 because...reasons...). Really wished they made more of an appearance throughout the series. I think they incorporated them and their culture and customs quite neatly and respectfully into that episode.
Jasmine design was based 100 percent on the animators older sister, and the voice actress, And Arabian princesses at the time. there are interviews with the artist and with his sister that prove this is true.
I love doug! It is definitely one of my favorite shows of all time.I love your top 10 list. There were a lot of good episodes listed. I am glad someone else loves Doug too! 😊
Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant! I was eight when the film came out and Esmeralda immediately became my favorite Disney leading lady for all the reasons you listed why she's awesome in this video. She is the perfect example of the strong heroine modern Disney thinks they're doing now but is failing at so horribly. Modern Disney is like, "Girls, you can either have friends and romance and be traditionally feminine or you can be a strong person who stands up for the little guy, but you can't be both. A strong woman is a lone wolf who doesn't need others and she shows how strong she is either through physical strength or reaching the top of the social/political ladder." Esmeralda shows this either/or idea, a response to the surface-level "feminism" (aka repackaged misogyny) that came about in the 2010s, is complete and utter nonsense. And that's why I love her.
@@BetterWithBob Thanks! Also, thanks for diving into Demi's career. I honestly didn't know much about it other than her roles in "Ghost" and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". She's a badass! No wonder they cast her as Esmeralda, and yay that she's now getting a comeback and the recognition she deserves.
The villain's very grounded, and believable. Unlike a lot of classic Disney villains who are over the top and often funny. Frollo is 💯serious and one of his motives is something any woman can fear, being taken advantage of.
“ and the only Renaissance film not to be nominated for an academy award-“ Actually, it was nominated for best original score . Frankly, it should’ve won.
I don't know if the cast was Romani, but another Romani-centred movie is Lapwing, which is set in 16th century Lincolnshire, England. Haven't watched it yet, but it's on my list!
Speaking of Disney Heroines, I would be curious for you to do a retrospective on the Susan & Lucy from the Narnia movies and Nani & Lilo from Lilo & Stitch, especially the latter since the live action movie is coming out for that this year.
I just rewatched the first two Narina movies. I have yet to see the third one. I hope they can continue adapting the rest of the books but knowing Disney at this point I doubt it. Still it's hilarious that "Voyage" was released by Fox a decade before Disney acquired them. Almost like Anastasia and the rest of Marvel's characters, and the remaining shows under Fox Kids. Almost as if this destiny. Idk they should've rebranded Freeform back to Fox Family.
This video has me wondering whether I held onto my Esmeralda Barbie I had as a kid - my parents actually got me the version in her festival dance dress and if she wasn't just the prettiest of all the Barbies I had, I don't know who was! ...man I really hope she's one of the few I kept (along with my Anastasia one - got her Once Upon a December gown, also quite lovely). This video was really well done and articulated its points very clearly.
Her book's origin story was that she was stolen by the Romani from her prostitute mother who didn't even know the father. I imagine they might go with something a little different 🤔
@BetterWithBob Honestly I have a few things to say. Firstly, I agree with what you're saying about the unfortunate sexualisation & objectification of not only women of colours but also women with curvier bodily types & larger cup sizes, which is equally stupid, petty, unfair and hypocritical ( including the video game part) women shouldn't have to alter their bodies to be "respected". Secondly, I agree that Esmeralda should be part of the Disney Princess line and shouldn't have been removed in the first place. While the Romani representation in the isn't perfect, Esmeralda is a well written character that deserves more respect and credit instead of being misjudged.
Funnily enough, Mulan initially began as a story where a Chinese girl falls in love with a British prince, before they opted to adapt The Ballad of Hua Mulan instead
@@BetterWithBob i would unironically watch it, it sounds promising and tbh Shang and Mulan's relationship wasn't that romantic. Would love to hear more about this
You know it’s gonna be a good day when you find a new video from your favourite UA-camr about your favourite character in one of your favourite movie 💜 🔔 💛
So, about Esmeralda's red dress. Instead of assuming it was modeled after the 50s adaptation of Hunchback, just go back to good ol' color theory in that red is often associated with passion and lust given the sequence where she wears it is what instigates Frollo's own lust for her. However, there's also cultural signifigance, because red is often the color associated with bad luck in Romani culture. And Esmeralda's life is certainly turned upside-down after she wore it.
tbh that is taken from tvtropes, which isn't an accurate source. a lot of roma comment they like the color red and use it on their flag and on wedding dresses. so again, we have to be careful with taking "film analysis" from that hell website.
my only issue with the ‘action girl’ thing is i don’t think it needs to be well written or well made to justify existing. same with diversity in media in general, no one ever asks for the same from action dudes (literally any jason stathum movie for example) or media that isn’t diverse, we are still bombarded with trash media like pureflix and daily wire, critical drinker just made the lamest short film ever, etc
She's not a princess because her parents weren't a king and a queen (I could even admit the chief of a village or region) and she didn't marry a prince. End of story. Neither are Alice, Wendy, Tinkerbell, Mulan, Jane, Megara, Lilo, etc. And THAT'S OK. Not every Disney female character NEEDS to be a princess to be worthy of being admired to and to be able to inspire children all around the world.
Some elaboration: in the video she's referring to herself as a child dressing up as Esmeralda. Literally right after the clip I showed, she starts talking about how she indeed knew nothing about Romani prejudice and scolds her younger self for cultural appropriation
@@BetterWithBob I don't like Whedon, Gaiman or Rowling but wouldn't someone like Roy Moore or Bret Kavanaugh or even Ron DeSantis or JD Vance have made more sense as hypocrite lawmakers who seek to strip marginalized people of their autonomy while being smarmy and gross at the same time (as much as I dislike the three aforementioned what concrete power do they actually have)
One of the best ways to show how this movie is messaging that Esmeralda is more than the performance she is putting is framing how the two drastically different men see her and portray her: Frollo, the obvious villain, fantasises about her as a figure of smoke and fire in an even more exagerated sexy dress than her dancing performance; Quasimodo made her wood figurine as she appears with her everyday outfit, with the goat.
Esmeralda isn't sexualised _by the movie_ , the movie specifically frames that she's sexualised by an evil man who is incapable of seeing her as a human and more than an object of desire (because he doesn't think of Romani as people to begin with), while the other man in the movie see her as a kind and compassionate woman and friend.
I loved your take on this, informative as well as fun to watch, as always!
I was obsessed with Esmeralda as a little girl in the late 90s. I remember thinking she was so cool. Now, years later she is still probably my favorite out of all disney characters.
Little girl you knew what cool was (and so does adult you) ^_^
same! before Mulan she was my fave hands-down, and she's still way up there. I admit I was Esmeralda for Halloween when I was like 6 or 7, before cosplaying as an ethnicity you didn't belong to was starting to get acknowledged as gauche.
You know, Esmeralda doesn't have to be Disney Princess in order to get recognition. She's already recognizable due to her cunning, fearless, and compassionate personality.
My logic is that she was a Princess and then got dropped because of shenanigans that I don't think were fair
@@BetterWithBob You have a point.
@@BetterWithBob How so she's not a princess, or ever was a princess, she wasn't the daughter of the King of the Gypsys so that makes her just a regular gypsy in the group. And she doesn't marry into royalty, she marries phoebes who is a military man, not a lord or duke or prince. Disney doesn't have to turn every female character in literature into princesses.
@wwozanewmusical Did you even watch this? Bob says at the start that not every girl who is a Disney princess is a princess. The current princess pantheon is: Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle,
Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Rapunzel, Merida, Moana, and Raya. Yet Belle's father was an inventor. Pocahontas father was a chief but not a king. Moana's father was a chief but not a king. Tiana was just a poor black girl. Mulan's father was just a soldier. Of those five, only Belle and Tiana have the distinction of marrying a Princes. The other three didn't marry at all. Yet they are all included.
As someone with a disability I try not to let it define me. That being said I fell in love with this movie the first time I was able to finish watching it. I saw some of myself in Qusi and this movie asks some really important questions in a very mature way. It may not be the best but it is the deepest Disney film. Also as a Christian I appreciated that it sowed how people misuse Christianity but also the right way to view it and live it.
Oh absolutely. I'm autistic myself and now as I get older I'm beginning to see how much of myself is in Quasimodo too. Another autistic friend of mine said the same
Anybody else remember that Disney Adventures Magazine cover from January 1998 with Pierce Brosnan-era James Bond flanked by Esmeralda, Megara, and Jasmine in action girl karate chip poses? I think that was when I realized I had a thing for Disney Princesses and Bond Girls LOL
I saw that when researching for the video and was like "what, that was a thing?"
She is no princess. She is our Roma queen.
I look forward to seeing your video! Just to clarify, I will say that Esmeralda is not a princess because she was not born into royalty, and she did not marry a royal individual. She’s better than a princess. She’s one of the people. One of us! And a virtuous person at that.
She is a worthy Disney Lady.
@@Sir_Persevere my point is that she was initially part of the line and then got removed from it
Mulan wasn't born into royalty or married into it either. She's still part of the Disney Princess lineup.
@hannahbrennan Yeah, @BetterWithBob addressed it. But I agree with you. Mulan should not be considered a Disney Princess, but rather a Disney Lady.
I'm still upset that "God Help the Outcasts" wasn't nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song!
"The Hunchback of Notre Dame" was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Musical or Comedy Score! - The only Disney Renaissance film that didn't receive an Oscar nomination is "The Rescuers Down Under" (I believe because it wasn't a musical).
It became the first Disney Renaissance film not to receive multiple Oscar nominations, because after this "Hercules", "Mulan", and "Tarzan" each received only one Oscar nomination and to me that showed that the Academy was ready to move on from Disney Renaissance, because the year before the Academy divided the Best Original Score category (again) into two "dramatic score" and "musical or comedy score". This was seen as a response to the dominance of the Disney Renaissance (in the score and song categories), a lot of film studios and film composers were upset that their dramatic scores were losing to Disney scores (a.k.a. Alan Menken) and when Hans Zimmer won for "The Lion King" and knowing "Pocahontas" was coming out they divided the original score into two and "Pocahontas" won musical or comedy score and song. They merged the category back into one in 2000 (after the end of the Disney Renaissance).
Oh that's interesting
@@BetterWithBob Also "Pocahontas" is the last Disney film (animated or live action) to be nominated and win both Best Original Score and Best Original Song in the same year (it wasn't until "Encanto" in 2022 when a Disney film was nominated in both categories)!
Only 7 Disney films have won both music categories in the same year: "Pinocchio", "Mary Poppins", "The Little Mermaid", "Beauty and the Beast", "Aladdin", "The Lion King", and "Pocahontas". - I don't think any other film studio achieve such a feat and winning 10 Oscars (in music) between 1990-1996.
Great work as always my friend and we appreciate the shout-out at the end. Good Romani representation remains sadly rare (let alone that played by actors of actual Romani descant). Here's hoping we can play a small part in changing that.
^Note for the audience: one of the best actors I've ever worked with up there.
Absolutely adore Hunchback as a film and Esmeralda as a character. She was a huge inspiration to me growing up. I love her complexity and how she always stands up for others in the face of adversity. ❤
fun fact! Esmeralda was designed with purple and green eyes to contrast. lots of disney villains beforehand wore purple and green as part of their design, and it's a meta reference as to how Frollo and first time audiences would initially see her with suspition, only for the movie then show there's more to her, like Quasi.
The fact that audiences missed that is kinda sad...
Ooh interesting. I've always loved the contrast between purple and green. And wasn't it a thing that green eyes were considered the mark of supernatural ability? So even more reason for Frollo to consider her a witch
Tinkerbell was a Disney Princess for a minute too
Yeah that was strange. Giving her a separate franchise seemed like a better call
I kind of wish Tiger Lily got more love tbh. Even as demonstrably racist as the Indian characters were in that, I've seen complaints that she was sexualized when she's more covered up than even Wendy - to say nothing of Tinkerbell and the Mermaids. She will never be a part of the franchise for obvious reasons, but Esmeralda's scowling at Frollo while tied to the stake always struck me as reminiscent of Tiger Lily's refusal to back down from Hook while tied to the anchor (she also refuses to give Peter up just as the Roma refuse to give Esmeralda up)
My birthday after Hunchback released, I got dang near every Esmeralda toy my parents were willing to buy me. I absolutely love her, to this day, and still have her doll. Heck, I have a ceramic magnet of her on my fridge right now. She's hands down the best, deepest, and most interesting character ever in a Disney movie. ❤
Ooh I think I might have had that same magnet
I've always loved Esmeralda since watching Disney's version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame in my childhood. Years later, I have come to realise how sweet she is, wanting respect for her people and accepting Quasimodo for what he is on the inside, rather than the outside. I'm in that position since I'm autistic. There's loads of different people around the world, depending on their race, religion, gender and disability, who all should be recognised for their personality. And I've made a lot of nice autistic friends because of that. Heck, one of them absolutely loves Esmeralda as well, even agrees she should be a role model for everyone around the world who needs to be respected for their differences, as it's the personality that matters. Just such a huge shame Disney rather put her in the Disney Princess lineup for money, because that's not how she should be seen as; she needs to be seen for her character. And it doesn't help that the bad sequel Disney made that I don't want to talk to about barely acknowledges her! 🙁
Disney, please bring Esmeralda back into the spotlight again, but this time for her selfless personality! That's what makes her a Disney Princess in my eyes! And Megara, Jane Porter, Kida Nedakh, Anna and Elsa all deserve to be Disney Princesses too! 🙂 I will always love Esmeralda, no matter how underrated she is nowadays. Yes, she's so selfless, kind and beautiful, but also inspiring to me. That's what makes her one of my favourite Disney ladies of all time. 🥰 And she could also do with a proper sequel to The Hunchback of Notre Dame as well as a movie all about her, explaining her childhood and her marriage to Phoebus. So many possibilities Disney could do with the franchise.
I have to be honest with everyone that out of all the Disney princesses or all animated females I have seen throughout my lifetime. 💃🏽 I have always loved Esmeralda from Disney's The Hunchback Of Notre Dame as one of my most favorite Disney character or animated heroine of my inner childhood especially since she is so beautiful even as a 'gypsy', what I love about Esmeralda so much it's she have of courage heart and who would defy the villain like Frollo, after all every Disney heroine never stand up against a villain before until Esmeralda did it. 💜 I am proud to say that I have always consider Esmeralda as one of my most favorite Disney character of all time, even I still called her as a best animated heroine too.
Okay I don’t do this often but your analysis is so on point and nuanced without being ham fisted that I kinda had to. Bravo for this incredibly well written video essay
Why thank you :)
Yes, she deserve better status. But it seems disney really does not care for this movie
It does get plenty of merch, and it's been featured in Kingdom Hearts, so it seems as though they're warming towards it
@@BetterWithBobwould you consider doing a Disney princes video please 🙏? I love these analysis of Disney films and the Swan Princess and Anastasia you do such a good analysis and really show another side to the story over the Princess slander and show how they are good characters.
@@BetterWithBobI’d disagree. Its pretty rare for me to find any merch for the film, and the little I’ve seen is focused solely around Esmerelda. Its even worse that the movie doesn’t have any attractions or meetable characters in the parks either
They also decided not to make a live action remake of this animation.
@@kristinahuchison2511 there was a live stage musical for a long long time in the parks, and they do have the stage musical which would be awesome on Broadway.
Esmerelda doesn't need to be a Disney Princess because she is a Disney activist
Ooh a new franchise. Who else would be part of it?
@@BetterWithBob I'm in
Great analysis. Hunchback is one of my favourite Disney films. Also loved the Be Kind Rewind mention 😁
She's fantastic isn't she?
Thank you SO MUCH for such an incredible video and analysis on my favorite Disney character!
Thank you for watching :)
Something I've grown to appreciate about Disney's Hunchback is that no less than three men fall for Esmerelda and in the end she ends up with the one she chooses. Frollo is your straightforward predator who sees her as an object he deserves to possess. With Quasimodo it's interesting as he's coming from a place where Esmerelda is one of the small handful of people who have ever been genuinely nice to him. In fact she's possibly literally the first woman he's ever spoken to. So Quasimodo is falling for her in a sense that he has absolutely no clue how romantic feelings actually work. But despite him having all the experience and wisdom regarding relationships of basically nada, he still understands that caring about her means letting her go and that she can still love him without wanting him. Hunchback has a lot of themes running through it, and the crowning one at the end is that what makes Quasi a good man (and Frollo the monster) is that good guys don't always end up with the girl (they think) they wanted because ultimately her agency is what matters most of all.
Yes 100%
Quasimodo sort of put her up on a pedestal as well, whereas Phoebus saw her as a person
@@BetterWithBob It's especially notable since as captain of the guard, Phoebus comes with a pretty lopsided power dynamic with her that she is understandably wary of at first. She's spent her whole life learning to watch out for herself and take the measure of people. Yet she let's her guard down and concludes maybe he isn't so bad pretty quickly, which gives another point in his favor.
Esmeralda and Meg are too cool to be princesses. They would cringe to see themselves on tons of merch 🤭
Maybe so lol
Esmerela just had attitude and I loved her for it. So many Disney princesses learn to stand up for themselves or others but she does it from the get go like she’s lived a life and not the sheltered girls the others mainly give off. Demi Moore was a perfect voice cast
Esmeralda has always been my favourite Disney character (who is not a princess). I also stand my opinion that both she and Pocahontas had the most beautifully made dolls of the 90s ... I had them all. Her green eyes make her stand out from the other Disney ladies and personally, I think she has the most beautiful design of all of them.
I was one of the few who loved Hunchback right from its release....I had the dolls, the lunchbox, the bedding....I loved it!
I think it is a travesty that Esmeralda and the other characters do not feature more in Disneyland Paris (though they did get a bit of spotlight during the re-opening of Notre Dame Cathedral).
She's a great character and deserves more love. 💜✨
Yes, her eyes are just dazzling!
Esmerelda is by far my favorite Disney character along with the Princesses Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Meg, and Kida.
I really appreciate that I'm not the only one who has always read Esmeralda as a black-coded character. I've had people admonish me for saying it like its an insult but its really meant as a compliment. Tbh I think another reason she and Kida get brushed under the rug is to firmly establish Tiana (whose skin tone is about as dark as Esme's) to be hailed as the official "first black Disney Princess." I don't hate Tiana but the film spends an inordinate amount of time trying to establish how "strong" she is without doing much to really show it. Yes, she is determined to open a restaurant to honor her father's memory and that's great, but she doesn't have much to say about the overall situation of her community at large (segregation, violence against the communities, the fact that veterans like her father came home from the war to find they still were second class citizens) and doesn't have any big reservations about placating Big Daddy La Boeff and Charlotte (who has developed a fan following that rivals Tiana's ironically) who are the main beneficiaries of said system. And that's fine because you can't change the world and not every white person in the deep South was a horrible person, but where Tiana is working within the system for an economic goal that will benefit herself and her family, Esmeralda is being a voice for the voiceless and speaking truth to power even at great risk to her own life (even her brashness nearly resulted in her people being wiped out by Frollo).
That's why I have so many issues with that film, even though I do appreciate what she means to multiple people and I'm not saying they're not allowed to like her or the film. A fairy tale is meant to take place in a vague 'somewhere' some time ago and be completely fictional, so it doesn't apply to the same rules and laws as our universe, hence Phillip and Aurora falling in love at first sight. But they set The Princess & the Frog in a very specific time and place - New Orleans in 1926 - and they even nodded to segregation existing in the movie's universe, and they don't commit to that. Even the woman Tiana was inspired by (Leah Chase) wanted to open her restaurant to specifically bring food to her community that was only being served at whites only places, and she was a highly political figure, so it's a real missed opportunity. It's not like Disney hadn't tackled racism before - a That's So Raven episode handled it quite respectfully from what I remember
Esmeralda is one of my favorite Disney characters from my favorite Disney movie
Excellent choice!
Fun fact I actually was Esmeralda for Halloween
I do have a sad story when Hunchback came out I never got an Esmeralda Barbie mom said she was too expensive at Kmart😢
Aww
I'm glad you brought up her skin color because I was telling people that Disney is rumored to do a live action remake and I said there are a lot of black people that are going to look at her as a black character Yes she's Romanian but she's also black to a lot of people and I just glad that somebody kind of brought this situation up because a lot of people were trying to attack me for disrespecting Romanians and I'm like I'm not that I'm not saying that there aren't dark skin and Romanians but what I'm saying is since it's a movie that was made in America and she has chocolate skin they're going to want a black person to play her and I think her kida Megra Jane Porter should have been Disney princesses regardless you know. I think now that people know better I think they could make good sales on those characters if they just put a little bit more time and effort behind them
My goodness another amazing in depth piece, ugh I’m always so inspired by your work! (And called out at some moments, cause I too was distracted from the truth of things by the popular narratives of the 2010s…)
@@lizz-kikimoria thanks for watching 😊
Could you do a video on Brother Bear 👀 idk what but that movies soooo underrated!
You know I can't remember if I've actually seen it, it's been so long. Maybe time to revisit
She,s not a Disney princess she is a Disney queen
I wonder if her skin was darkened (compared to real life romani) to help american audiences...as "white on white" racism is not actively discussed or practised there.
(Compared to europe)
Over here casually mentioning 10th Kingdom….i love that movie/TV mini series! You should do a video about it because I honestly don’t know many people that even know what The 10th Kingdom is
That's a possibility for sure. It came before a lot of other fairy tale retellings were in
What you said at 12:06 is so, so, so, so true. Hit the nail on the head.
I often wonder why people concern themselves with whether a heroine in these films should be considered one of the princesses or not. I get that they feel that it gives them a recognition that they apparently haven't received. But on the other side, we still love them regardless of whether they bear that title or not. The fact that we're discussing them, decades after we first saw them, shows that they have their fans, their audience. And frankly, in a lot of cases, the characters not found in the princess category are a good deal more interesting than those who are, even if the latter's films were more successful at the box office. Having the movies of these characters we like under-perform in their day stings, I understand, but putting this label on them won't suddenly make them gain love from the people who haven't been loving them this whole time :(
Yeah, because Disney actively wanted movies that _could_ succeed, fail. And yes. I am still angry about Treasure Planet, the sci-fi reimagining of Treasure Island.
Angry about it failing?
@BetterWithBob YES! 😭 I know sci-fi and Disney didn't go "hand-in-hand" but the willful campaign against the creators because Disney didn't believe in the project and strung them along, hoping that they would let their dream die, and then releasing the movie with terrible marketing and release date.
"Didn't" meaning "didn't used to, but now they own everything except Sony, so they have to have sci-fi"
@@drgskates Esp when the director duo spent at least 10 years, 5 Disney movies, 2 Disney CEOs begging, sweatshop working to actually get the green light to make much less release their dream movie of Treasure Island in Space then Corporate goes further and cancel the already planned Treasure Planet sequel right at the last second.
@@maidenofthelight It's so disheartening!!
0:25 Omg GI Jane!!! The most badass female movie ever!!!!
I rewatched it recently and it holds up so well!
Nice video! Personally I’m kinda relieved Esmerelda isn’t in the Disney Princess lineup, especially when you consider how dark skinned characters like Pocahontas and Jasmine get treated, having their skin grossly lightened. Same problem would’ve happened to Kida if she was added to the lineup given her official artwork by the company, completely erasing her dark skin to appear lighter. Pocahontas, Esmerelda and Kida remain some of my favorite characters because they prove they are so much more than just a pretty face who fell in love with a man. Tbh I kinda wish Esmerelda stayed single at the end of the movie, her love story with Phoebus was practically nonexistent and felt incredibly forced and straight up unnecessary (doesn’t help I find Phoebus to be kinda pointless to the narrative aside being a love interest) and its a shame Esmerelda’s reception was a result of Demi Moore’s career at the time, similar to John Smith being played by Mel Gibson, a man who wasn’t particularly invested in the role but accepted it anyway. But anyway, I really enjoyed Esmerelda’s portrayal in the movie despite she does have a pretty stereotypical design as a Romani woman, and I’ve seen videos by Romani UA-camrs explaining why Esmerelda isn’t a good character for Romani representation.
I do find the romance built up enough in-universe, where she's visibly impressed when he stops the soldiers from chasing after her, then gives money to what he thinks is an old beggar woman, and when he tells her how she can claim sanctuary to avoid arrest. And then you see her worried when he goes into the burning mill to save the family - where she clearly fears him not surviving. The attraction is visibly there in the church when she sees that he's treating her with respect, and the burning of the mill would have to be some time later, so she would have had time to think about him
And I think it's important for Quasimodo's story as well because it shows how he's different from Frollo, where he accepts that Esmeralda loves someone else and still values her as a friend
@@BetterWithBobI agree its a nice twist that Quasimodo learned to accept Esmerelda didn’t reciprocate his feelings but she still loves him as a friend, but it always gave a very sour taste in my mouth the sexy woman ended up falling in love with the typical hot guy. Come on, we really had to make Esmerelda end up with the hot guy instead? I remember reading somewhere a big reason why Disney made Esmerelda fall in love with Phoebus instead was because: they didn’t want Esmerelda having an ugly boyfriend, especially because she was planned to be added to the Disney Princess lineup. Its a slap in the face to Quasi’s character and basically saying he’s not good enough for Es because he’s extremely ugly. But in the movie’s context Quasi and Es have a lot more development than Es did with Phoebus.
If you compare Esmerelda and Phoebus’s screentime and chemistry in comparison to other couples of the Renaissance, they have by far the least amount of interactions. They only have a couple short conversations before the execution scene, so it always made it feel a bit forced as to why Esmerelda fell in love with Phoebus. I’m sorry but it takes a lot more than them cracking jokes and jabs at each other to convince me they’re a cute couple. And maybe it’s just me, but they always felt like a big ripoff of Pocahontas and John Smith, ya know the movie that literally came out before the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Both couples basically have the same dynamic with very few differences, a beautiful dark skinned woman who falls in love with a handsome blonde captain and their stories revolve around the prejudices of the woman’s people. Poca and John have always been one of my favorite couples as a kid, and I really wanted to see Quasi win Esmerelda’s love instead, showing he didn’t need to be normal to win her affection. Instead it became another example of “only hot guys get beautiful girls, plain and average men don’t win no matter how nice and kind they are” And maybe its just me, but it always felt like Phoebus was largely attracted to her beauty. Yes he admires her rebellious spirit and she doesn’t take crap from anyone, especially Frollo, but it always kinda made me confused to why Esmerelda needed a love interest anyway. And as I said it doesn’t help they have the least amount of screentime together in comparison to most other Disney couples, which I get as their love isn’t a big part of the story
Wait, if Esmeralda was switched with Quasimodo as infants that makes Esmeralda Frollo’s niece, since the reason book Frollo takes in Quasimodo and raises him is he believes Quasimodo is his brother’s bastard son. That’s pretty hardcore incest for Disney (aside from Hercules). It could also mean Esmeralda and Quasimodo are actually twins, with the Roma keeping the pretty baby and giving the ugly one to its father. Then again there was a story years ago about a blonde girl who was aggressively seized from a Roma family because she was blonde and people suspected they’d stolen her as an infant and then of course DNA tests to find her real parents found that the Roma couple were her real parents and were just het for blonde hair. So there could have been practical reasons for them wanting to leave the red haired infant with his presumably red haired father beyond just thinking red hair is icky.
I’d always thought Pocahontas looked wrong for a Native American and am happy to hear some vindication of that. It’s always been kind of jarring to me because I’ve interacted with enough genuine Natives and am part Native myself. I also know there is at least one portrait of the real Matoaka who looks nothing like the Disney version and don’t know why they couldn’t have used that as a base. Possibly because the real thing was not exactly Hollywood’s idea of pretty and would be more likely to be cast in the role of evil stepsister than Disney Princess.
I loved her! I had a doll of her with her coin skirt(?) and it was my absolute favorite.
Hunchback is one of my Top 15 Animated Films and Esmeralda is definitely one of my Top 15 Animated Heroines! If ever there was one deserving of a comeback, it's her!
We shall see...
I always loved Esmeralda and Pocahontas most. They are awesome role models for a little girl. I'm convinced, they had a big influence in my thinking of morality, solidarity, justice and standig up for other people in need.
It's a shame that Disney don't give her more attention, because she deserves it.
looking forward to video on alice, eilonwy, kida, and nani & lilo if you going to do them
I already did one on Atlantis as a whole, and I am working on an Alice one as we speak :)
@@BetterWithBob oh kinda thought that video was separate from disney princesses thing your doing so good to know
For some reason, I remember the Esmeralda Barbie doll more than the other "princesses". And I didn't even care for the movie.
4:29 literally one of the best episodes (but the cool kids always hate anything to do with S5 because...reasons...). Really wished they made more of an appearance throughout the series. I think they incorporated them and their culture and customs quite neatly and respectfully into that episode.
I always enjoyed that one too
Jasmine design was based 100 percent on the animators older sister, and the voice actress, And Arabian princesses at the time. there are interviews with the artist and with his sister that prove this is true.
@@wwozanewmusical also inspiration from Jasmine Guy (who she's named after)
I love doug! It is definitely one of my favorite shows of all time.I love your top 10 list. There were a lot of good episodes listed. I am glad someone else loves Doug too! 😊
Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant!
I was eight when the film came out and Esmeralda immediately became my favorite Disney leading lady for all the reasons you listed why she's awesome in this video. She is the perfect example of the strong heroine modern Disney thinks they're doing now but is failing at so horribly. Modern Disney is like, "Girls, you can either have friends and romance and be traditionally feminine or you can be a strong person who stands up for the little guy, but you can't be both. A strong woman is a lone wolf who doesn't need others and she shows how strong she is either through physical strength or reaching the top of the social/political ladder."
Esmeralda shows this either/or idea, a response to the surface-level "feminism" (aka repackaged misogyny) that came about in the 2010s, is complete and utter nonsense. And that's why I love her.
Brilliantly said yourself :)
@@BetterWithBob Thanks! Also, thanks for diving into Demi's career. I honestly didn't know much about it other than her roles in "Ghost" and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". She's a badass! No wonder they cast her as Esmeralda, and yay that she's now getting a comeback and the recognition she deserves.
This movie definitely scared me as a kid 😂 didn’t watch as much as I did the others
The villain's very grounded, and believable. Unlike a lot of classic Disney villains who are over the top and often funny. Frollo is 💯serious and one of his motives is something any woman can fear, being taken advantage of.
Esmeralda and Belle are my top two favourites! I had Esmeralda Barbie, some figures and still have my solf toy Djali!
@@nz_puddlehound1617 I got an Esmeralda classic doll for Christmas and she now sits proudly beside my desk aha
“ and the only Renaissance film not to be nominated for an academy award-“
Actually, it was nominated for best original score . Frankly, it should’ve won.
For real God Help The Outcasts makes me cry every time I listen to it
@@riathepinkie4974 same!
I don't know if the cast was Romani, but another Romani-centred movie is Lapwing, which is set in 16th century Lincolnshire, England. Haven't watched it yet, but it's on my list!
Ah I must check it out
Speaking of Disney Heroines, I would be curious for you to do a retrospective on the Susan & Lucy from the Narnia movies and Nani & Lilo from Lilo & Stitch, especially the latter since the live action movie is coming out for that this year.
Hmm that could be fun
I just rewatched the first two Narina movies. I have yet to see the third one. I hope they can continue adapting the rest of the books but knowing Disney at this point I doubt it.
Still it's hilarious that "Voyage" was released by Fox a decade before Disney acquired them. Almost like Anastasia and the rest of Marvel's characters, and the remaining shows under Fox Kids. Almost as if this destiny. Idk they should've rebranded Freeform back to Fox Family.
This video has me wondering whether I held onto my Esmeralda Barbie I had as a kid - my parents actually got me the version in her festival dance dress and if she wasn't just the prettiest of all the Barbies I had, I don't know who was! ...man I really hope she's one of the few I kept (along with my Anastasia one - got her Once Upon a December gown, also quite lovely).
This video was really well done and articulated its points very clearly.
Poor Esmeralda,
Can’t get a break
Two weeks ago the Disney store had her on clearance for $10 on Amazon, thus proving your point
Oh wow really?
Shhh. Don't bring her up otherwise they will make a live action origin story for her.
Her book's origin story was that she was stolen by the Romani from her prostitute mother who didn't even know the father. I imagine they might go with something a little different 🤔
@BetterWithBob Honestly I have a few things to say. Firstly, I agree with what you're saying about the unfortunate sexualisation & objectification of not only women of colours but also women with curvier bodily types & larger cup sizes, which is equally stupid, petty, unfair and hypocritical ( including the video game part) women shouldn't have to alter their bodies to be "respected". Secondly, I agree that Esmeralda should be part of the Disney Princess line and shouldn't have been removed in the first place. While the Romani representation in the isn't perfect, Esmeralda is a well written character that deserves more respect and credit instead of being misjudged.
if disney made another film with a chinese princess back then, would Mulan even remain in the franchise
Funnily enough, Mulan initially began as a story where a Chinese girl falls in love with a British prince, before they opted to adapt The Ballad of Hua Mulan instead
@@BetterWithBob i would unironically watch it, it sounds promising and tbh Shang and Mulan's relationship wasn't that romantic. Would love to hear more about this
@paul11-f9e Yeah, that idea totally scream British imperialism and if you think so with the 1st then don't watch the direct to video Mulan sequel-
@@maidenofthelight oh sweetie, it’s too late but thx anyways #Mushutruevillain
i actually have that midnight masquerade Esmerelda doll along with the others
Ooh lucky XD
I have the 'classic' doll that's currently in the Disney Store as well as a figurine of her in the red dress from back in the day
You know it’s gonna be a good day when you find a new video from your favourite UA-camr about your favourite character in one of your favourite movie 💜 🔔 💛
@@Senglishify ooh who is this UA-camr? They're bound to be better than silly old me
❤ her & megara
Extremely good video. No notes.
Thank you!
So, about Esmeralda's red dress. Instead of assuming it was modeled after the 50s adaptation of Hunchback, just go back to good ol' color theory in that red is often associated with passion and lust given the sequence where she wears it is what instigates Frollo's own lust for her. However, there's also cultural signifigance, because red is often the color associated with bad luck in Romani culture. And Esmeralda's life is certainly turned upside-down after she wore it.
Apologies, I was merely saying that the 50s film showed Esmeralda being barefoot and that's what they took notes from
tbh that is taken from tvtropes, which isn't an accurate source. a lot of roma comment they like the color red and use it on their flag and on wedding dresses. so again, we have to be careful with taking "film analysis" from that hell website.
15:44 Dude, careful. You drop too much truth and people won't be able to pick up on all of it.
@@AkamoriRivals ah sure that's what rewatches are for 😉
my only issue with the ‘action girl’ thing is i don’t think it needs to be well written or well made to justify existing. same with diversity in media in general, no one ever asks for the same from action dudes (literally any jason stathum movie for example) or media that isn’t diverse, we are still bombarded with trash media like pureflix and daily wire, critical drinker just made the lamest short film ever, etc
Oh lord I don't even want to imagine a Critical Drinker short film lol
@ 😂
She's not a princess because her parents weren't a king and a queen (I could even admit the chief of a village or region) and she didn't marry a prince. End of story. Neither are Alice, Wendy, Tinkerbell, Mulan, Jane, Megara, Lilo, etc. And THAT'S OK. Not every Disney female character NEEDS to be a princess to be worthy of being admired to and to be able to inspire children all around the world.
"her experiences seemed black" no offence but she has no idea the oppression and experiences Romani people faced and still do to this day
Some elaboration: in the video she's referring to herself as a child dressing up as Esmeralda. Literally right after the clip I showed, she starts talking about how she indeed knew nothing about Romani prejudice and scolds her younger self for cultural appropriation
I'm super late but tribute to the Algorithm Gods!
JK is a hero and is protecting women's rights. You are a man, know your place
Well that's me told
@@BetterWithBob I don't like Whedon, Gaiman or Rowling but wouldn't someone like Roy Moore or Bret Kavanaugh or even Ron DeSantis or JD Vance have made more sense as hypocrite lawmakers who seek to strip marginalized people of their autonomy while being smarmy and gross at the same time (as much as I dislike the three aforementioned what concrete power do they actually have)