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Up To Eleven is a defunct trope
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** It's taken UpToEleven in the Paper Mills Playhouse version, as you see Quasimodo's final grasp of sanity slip, ensures Frollo can't escape and hurls him off the roof.
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** It's taken UpToEleven up to eleven in the Paper Mills Playhouse version, as you see Quasimodo's final grasp of sanity slip, ensures Frollo can't escape and hurls him off the roof.
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* "Sanctuary (Reprise)" in the stage version. Taken UpToEleven in the American production, in which Frollo corners Esmeralda in her cell and [[AttemptedRape forces himself on her.]] The claustrophobia of the prison cell set as Esmeralda tries to crawl towards the bars and call for help despite knowing the cell is locked and nobody will free her just sells her helplessness and the discomfort of the scene.
to:
* "Sanctuary (Reprise)" in the stage version. Taken UpToEleven up to eleven in the American production, in which Frollo corners Esmeralda in her cell and [[AttemptedRape forces himself on her.]] The claustrophobia of the prison cell set as Esmeralda tries to crawl towards the bars and call for help despite knowing the cell is locked and nobody will free her just sells her helplessness and the discomfort of the scene.
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!!The Disney film:
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hunchback_frollo_nf.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:'''[[BlasphemousBoast "And He shall smite the wicked, and plunge them into the fiery pit!"]]'''[[note]][[TemptingFate Oh, He does]]. He most certainly [[LaserGuidedKarma does]]...]][[/note]]
The Disney adaptation of Victor Hugo's classic novel (which is hardly light reading in itself) is one of the [[DarkerAndEdgier darkest films ever produced by the studio]], featuring adult content like infanticide, the outright racist treatment of the Roma people, the abuse of religious power and creepy lust displayed by one of the most vile and frighteningly realistic villains in the history of animated films, and on-screen deaths for heroes and villains alike. As a result, it has [[NightmareFuel more than enough frightening moments and concepts to go around for the whole family]]. With all of this and the heavy adult themes present in the picture, it's startling to realize that the film somehow got a G rating from the MPAA...
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* [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vlcsnap_2017_06_07_21h41m14s229.png The gargoyle]] that randomly comes to life just to finish off Frollo.
* The statues of the saints looking down at Frollo, and of the Virgin Mother's eyes opening as the lightning flashes in the prologue.
** Also [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vlcsnap_2017_04_21_19h35m39s204.png this one]] seems to be staring at the viewer instead of Frollo.
** It's not just the Virgin Mary either. The angels guarding her and even the baby Jesus in her arms have their eyes opened by the lightning flash. That brief frame is terrifying.
* Frollo being scared [[KickTheSonOfABitch for the first time in his life.]] Those statues seem to be staring into his very soul, and one can't help but shake the feeling that they ''really are.'' Especially when it focuses on the Virgin Mary...
* Quasimodo tied to a spinning platform as the crowd [[ProducePelting throws eggs and vegetables at him]] is ''terrifying''. Fortunately, Esmeralda's intervention cuts the scene short.
** Ironically, it's a [[{{Bowdlerization}} bowdlerized]] version of a similar scene in the book, where he's whipped and mocked by the crowd.
** For some it is worse in this version because of how unprovoked that was. At least in the book, he was guilty of attempted kidnapping and nobody knew that the true culprit was Frollo.
** In the musical however, [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs he is whipped, and completely without provocation]].
* The sheer look on Quasimodo's face after he breaks free of the chains holding him to Notre Dame. Having never seen Quasimodo truly angry before, it is [[https://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213005/5132045-4484381303-38159.jpg frightening]].
* '''''Judge Claude Frollo.''''' Let's just say there's a reason why he's considered the darkest and the most evil Disney villain ever conceived.
** Tony Jay's voice for Frollo counts, making his song more frightening.
** Most of the other Creator/{{Disney}} villains were terrifying and evil in their own right, but Frollo trumps a majority of them due to following in [[WesternAnimation/{{Cinderella}} Lady Tremaine's]] footsteps in that he is [[BadassNormal very, very normal and realistic]]. It gets better. The chances of you personally getting attacked by [[WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989 a sea witch]], [[WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}} a sorcerer]], or [[WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs an evil queen]] are slim to none. And [[BadassBoast no one]] [[VillainWithGoodPublicity has good publicity]] [[MemeticMutation like]] [[WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast Gaston]]. But are there genocidal racists out there in RealLife who [[HidingBehindReligion use religion to justify their beliefs and actions]], and convince other people to follow them? Oh, yes.
** His ''very introduction'' applies. As the Roma are surrounded by soldiers, a huge shadow casts itself over the wall, revealed to be Frollo on his Bruiser of a horse. The pure ''terror'' in the male Romani's voice is as if he has come face to face with the devil itself; a textbook OhCrap reaction.
--->'''''Judge Claude Frollo!'''''
** The part of the opening number that describes Frollo pretty much says it all about this guy:
--->''Judge Claude Frollo longed to purge the world of vice and sin.\\
And he saw corruption everywhere...'' '''''except within.'''''
** It also echoes uncomfortably with modern third-world citizens who desperately seek passage to a better life in nations who mercilessly exploit them like slaves, only to run afoul of monsters like Frollo who refuse to treat them like humans for "daring" to even ''[[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence exist]]''.
** During the opening sequence, Frollo looks positively ''demonic'' as he chases down and ultimately ''kills'' Quasimodo's poor mother, a Romani woman whose swaddled baby he initially thinks is stolen goods. There's no discretion either--you get to see Frollo kill her ''on-screen''. And if not for the Archdeacon's intervention, this guy would very well have murdered baby Quasimodo himself as well. And what's worse is that Frollo thinks he is guiltless and in the right (not to mention how he immediately, unhesitatingly moves to take another innocent life when he realizes what the woman actually had)!
*** Heck, the way he talks about it with the Archdeacon. He's very much treating the whole situation as if it's just any other day for him, just another part of his job. That someone could be so casual about killing a woman and then trying to drown her child, "monster" or not, is chilling.
*** There is a very brief moment when baby Quasimodo cries, and Frollo realizes what he's actually holding... then he moves the cloth from the baby's face, discovers his deformity, and immediately begins to look around for somewhere to dispose of the poor infant. It's the move from what might have been stunned realization, to disgust and panic that really sells it. Not that Frollo wouldn't have justified himself somehow anyway, but that one moment somehow makes it even worse.
----> '''Frollo''': A baby..? (''moves the cloth and freezes in horror'') '''A monster!'''
*** In the Finnish dub, Frollo's tone of voice when he says "This is an unholy demon. I'm sending it back to Hell, where it belongs," is [[ButForMeItWasTuesday as if he's discussing the weather]].
*** And what does he say after the archdeacon guilt-trips him into raising Quasimodo after killing his mother? "Just so that he's kept locked up where no one else can see... even this foul creature may yet prove to be of use to me". Yeah, it's not like he's actually gonna treat Quasi as a human being or anything.
----> '''Clopin:''' And Frollo gave the child a cruel name. A name that means "half-formed". ''Quasimodo!''
** His obsession with Esmeralda is quite [[NoYay creepy]] indeed, and not at all subtle.
** The VillainSong, "Hellfire". ''[[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic Fabulous]]'' [[IncrediblyLongNote singer]], [[ArsonMurderAndAdmiration though.]]
*** When he says "Let her taste the fires of hell," you can actually hear the faint screaming of a woman being burned alive!
*** Can't forget the hellish monk choir draped in red robes who provides the chorus of ''Mea culpa, mea maxima culpa''. (Latin for "my fault, my most grievous fault" or "I am guilty, I am so guilty" in more modern language) said right after he says he's not the one at fault.[[note]]This is actually a part of the mass, called "Confiteor" or "I confess", which can be summed up as everyone in church admitting they have sinned often and much with thoughts, words, deeds and neglect, and asking, among others, the Virgin Mary, the saints and angels and each other, to pray for them.[[/note]]
*** It's a blink-and-you'll-miss moment, but when Frollo rushes through the monk choir, watch the direction of their [[NothingIsScarier unseen]] gaze. Their heads turn toward Frollo, as though their invisible eyes are laser-guided to follow him.
*** Frollo is interrupted mid-song by one of his minions, who's telling him that Esmeralda has disappeared from the Cathedral. What makes this moment truly disturbing is that Frollo, for one moment, looks like he's forgotten where he is, and what he's doing.
----> '''Soldier:''' Minister Frollo, the gypsy has escaped!
----> '''Frollo:''' ''What?!''
----> '''Soldier:''' She's nowhere in the cathedral. She's gone.
----> '''Frollo:''' But ''how'', I - never mind. Get out, [[BadBoss you idiot!]] I'll find her. I'll find her if I have to ''burn down all of Paris!''
*** In [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EaUFqwnzC4 the French version]], instead of saying "She will be mine, or she will burn!", he says "Be mine, or my passion will take you to Hell!"[[note]]French: ''"Sois mienne, ma passion te mènera en Enfer"''[[/note]]. The message is clear in this version; Frollo will be the one raising hell.
*** In the Italian version, he sings ''I'm waiting for you in Hell'' instead of just ''Choose me or your pyre''. He knows this obsession will damn him but it's got him too tight. That's a sign that he's '''really''' losing it, in a horrifying way.
** Frollo looks very much like the bastard spawn of [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Lex Luthor]] and [[Franchise/{{Batman}} The Joker]] when he grins, and his cold glare is equally as frightening.
** When confronting Quasimodo for helping Esmeralda escape Notre Dame, Frollo goes from his [[TranquilFury usually polite and cold tone]] to flat-out UnstoppableRage as he shouts at Quasimodo and [[KickTheDog destroys his model replica of Paris]]. Quasimodo is lying on the floor, looking like a frightened child. [[FridgeHorror Makes one wonder if this was the first time Frollo ever shouted at Quasimodo like that]].
---> '''Frollo''': Isn't this one new? It's awfully good. Looks very much like the... Gypsy girl. I know... you helped her '''''[[SuddenlyShouting ESCAPE!]]''''' And now all of Paris is burning because of you!
---> '''Quasimodo''': Sh-She was kind to me, Master!
---> '''Frollo''': '''YOU IDIOT!!! THAT WASN'T KINDNESS, IT WAS CUNNING! SHE'S A GYPSY! GYPSIES ARE INCAPABLE OF FEELING REAL LOVE! THINK, BOY!''' '''''THINK OF YOUR MOTHER!!!'''''
** The following dialogue as Frollo recomposes himself doesn't help much either.
--->'''Frollo''': But what chance could a poor, misshapen child like you have against her heathen treachery? Well, never you mind, Quasimodo. ''[Pulls a dagger from his robe and stabs the Esmeralda doll with it.]'' She'll be out of our lives soon enough. ''[Holds the doll over a candle flame.]'' I will free you from her evil spell. ''[Tosses the incinerated doll to the floor.]'' She will torment you no longer.
** The scene where he confronts Esmeralda while she's about to be burned telling her to "Choose me or the fire". Rather than fear, Esmeralda looks at him with visible disgust right after letting her choice be plainly known to him with a powerful SpitefulSpit. She would rather face her death, via one of the most horrifically painful methods of execution imaginable, no less, than take Frollo's offer, so repulsed is she by how loathsome and monstrously evil Frollo has become in his lust for her.
* Earlier, the scene where he starts groping her when she uses Notre Dame as a sanctuary, along with smelling her hair and lustfully caressing her neck. It's quite shocking to see a realistic portrayal of someone getting sexually harassed.
* The scene where Frollo explains his viewpoint of the Roma people to Phoebus. Hello, blatant genocide metaphor in a ''family-friendly movie.'' Especially bad for those of us whose relatives were, and continue to be, oppressed by anti-Roma (or anti-almost anything else, really) sentiment.
-->'''Frollo:''' I have been... ''[[DeadlyEuphemism taking care]]'' of the Gypsies. ''[Crushes some ants under a finger with each word.]'' One... by... ''one.'' Yet, for all my success, they have ''thrived''! ''[Pulls off a tile to reveal an ants' nest.]'' I believe that they have a safe haven within the walls of this very city... a ''[[{{Dehumanization}} nest]]'' if you will. They call it the ''[Incredulous scoff.]'' "Court of Miracles".
-->'''Phoebus:''' What are we going to do about it, sir?\\
'''Frollo:''' ''[Smirks, flips the tile over and smashes it back down, crushing every last ant under it, then grinding it a bit to make sure.]''\\
'''Phoebus:''' ''[visibly disturbed]'' ...You make your point quite vividly, sir.
** Phoebus first meeting Judge Frollo, in the castle torture chamber, where you get to hear the sound of the previous captain of the guard being ''tortured to death''. Frollo even advices the TortureTechnician to [[ATasteOfTheLash whip]] his victim slower, because doing it too fast will make the new pain drown out the old one (which he speaks of [[ButForMeItWasTuesday in the most eerily casual manner possible]]). The captain's crime? "Disappointing" Frollo.
* The burning of the miller's house just because he and his family were suspected of hiding Romani. Said family included at least one child and a ''baby''. Frollo even tries to make Phoebus carry out the evil deed, (which he ''very'' understandably refuses to do) and then tries to execute him when he rescues the people involved.
** Just how ''FAST'' the house becomes engulfed is horrific to watch. Imagine what it would be like from ''inside'' the house!
* The last twenty-five seconds of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CVwYC7WrP0 "Paris Burning"]] is the embodiment of fear and terror itself. In the film, it's played over a clip looking over the skyline of Paris, glowing bright red from all the fire and the smoke filling the sky, as though Frollo really has brought Hellfire to Earth.
** After Notre Dame itself was partially destroyed by fire on April 15th 2019, it's become even worse in hindsight.
** ''And'' if you listen to the scene with headphones, as Frollo contemplates Esmeralda's escape, you can hear the muffled screams and cries of the townspeople - men, women, and children.
* Imagine for a moment you are one of the soldiers under Frollo's command. Specifically, one of those attacking the Cathedral. You've stuck by the Judge through all of his monstrosities. The city is in revolt, the Cathedral is throwing beams, stone and molten lead at you. All of this is explainable. Then the birds attack, and everything is put into perspective. The Cathedral isn't attacking you. {{God}} is, and now [[{{Satan}} the Devil]] has a claim on your soul. Pious or not, that would be terrifying.
* If you interpret the gargoyles strictly as part of Quasi's imagination, not to mention how he behaves around Frollo, it really puts into perspective how much psychological damage has been done to this poor boy in his 20 years in isolation.
** Really, the fact that Quasimodo was ''raised'' by this madman, the fact that he's not stark raving mad himself is nothing short of a miracle. The Archdeacon might possibly have served as a tempering influence, but he's only in a handful of scenes, and almost all of Quasi's social interaction is with Frollo.
* The fact that the entrance to the Court of Miracles is through a gothic, eerie medieval graveyard inside the grave of a French Crusader that died in UsefulNotes/TheCrusades.
* Clopin giving a SlasherSmile when he was about to execute Quasimodo and Phoebus as spies. Thankfully Esmeralda stopped him before it was too late.
** The song beforehand qualifies too, [[LyricalDissonance if one takes the time to look at the lyrics]].
* If you don't like insects, the scene where Frollo lifts up the stone covering a nest of ants can be nauseating. Granted, they're just common ants which are completely harmless, but even to people who ''don't'' have insectophobia, an entire nest of them crawling over each other can be unsettling. Even worse is that Frollo uses and murders the ants to demonstrate that he's been killing off innocent Romani for decades one by one without fail in the hopes of finding their hideout to kill them all at once.
* The soundtrack is [[AwesomeMusic/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame awesomely terrifying all by itself]], but there's a GeniusBonus in the OminousLatinChanting you might not catch if you're not either a ClassicalMusic fan or know UsefulNotes/{{Latin|Language}}: namely, the chanting is not mere CanisLatinicus, but actually bits and pieces from the Requiem Mass text (which has been set to music many times by Classical composers, particularly [[Music/WolfgangAmadeusMozart Mozart]] and [[Music/GiuseppeVerdi Verdi]]), mostly "Kyrie Eleison" (meaning "Lord, have mercy", which can be as heartbreaking as it is nightmarish), but also the "Dies Irae" ("[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Day of Wrath]]", [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dies_irae#Text full text and translations]] at Wiki/{{Wikipedia}}) sequence, particularly when Frollo chases Quasimodo's mother up to Notre Dame. Two lines from the latter really stick out: ''"Quantus tremor est futurus, quando Judex est venturus"'' which roughly translates to ''"How great will be the quaking, when the Judge will come"''. The text itself refers to Judgment Day and the Apocalypse, which adds yet another brand of fuel to the mix all by itself, but in the context of the scene goes further still by taking on a new meaning as Quasimodo's mother is chased down by the Judge who will kill her and try to kill her baby.
* The climax:
** Frollo makes this chilling remark during his last encounter with the Archdeacon:
---> '''Archeacon:''' Frollo, have you gone mad?! I will not tolerate this assault on the House of God!
---> '''Frollo:''' Silence, you old fool! (''throws the Archdeacon down the stairs'') The hunchback and I have unfinished business to attend to. And this time, ''you will '''not''' interfere''.
** In the following scene, Frollo attempts to stab Quasimodo, but the latter manages to fight back and grab the knife. What follows is Quasimodo being covered in red light and wearing a DeathGlare as he advances on Frollo and raises the knife, and Frollo himself is terrified at this sudden show of violence, when Quasimodo gives a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech and throws the knife away instead. While Frollo would have had it coming, the fact that the protagonist of a Disney movie briefly considered ''stabbing'' someone to death is beyond creepy.
** Frollo chases after Quasimodo and Esmeralda onto the cathedral balcony. Losing track of his prey, he scans the dark balcony. He looks and sees the two hiding below the balcony gargoyles, and viciously attacks the duo with his sword, one swipe barely nicking Quasi's arm.
--->'''Frollo:''' Leaving so soon? ''[Proceeds to swipe his sword madly at them.]''
** In his insane rage, Frollo finally admits to Quasi the truth about his mother while letting out all the true hatred he concealed from the hunchback for the past two decades.
--->'''Frollo:''' I should've known you'd risk your life to save that Gypsy witch! Just as your own mother died trying to save you.\\
'''Quasimodo:''' What?\\
'''Frollo:''' And now, [[IShouldHaveDoneThisYearsAgo I'm going to do what I should've done]]... '''''''[[SuddenlyShouting TWENTY YEARS AGO!]]''''''' ''[Throws his cape over Quasi's face to try to toss him off the edge of the cathedral.]''
** His final scene is the image above for a reason. While watching it, notice the color of his eyes and teeth. They're white like Esmeralda's and Quasi's, until he climbs the gargoyle to decapitate the Roma, ''then they turn yellow.''
*** Frollo's last words. The way he says "And He shall smite the wicked and plunge them into the fiery pit" makes it clear: Frollo no longer sees himself as a soldier of God, but as ''God himself''. That shows how deep he fell.
*** The [[https://youtu.be/cNbv7fFNYMU?t=2m13s Swedish version]] manages to be very unnerving with his [[LaughingMad laugh now]] sounding not only deranged like in the original, but also like it comes from the very pits of hell itself.
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!!The Disney film:
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hunchback_frollo_nf.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:'''[[BlasphemousBoast "And He shall smite the wicked, and plunge them into the fiery pit!"]]'''[[note]][[TemptingFate Oh, He does]]. He most certainly [[LaserGuidedKarma does]]...]][[/note]]
The Disney adaptation of Victor Hugo's classic novel (which is hardly light reading in itself) is one of the [[DarkerAndEdgier darkest films ever produced by the studio]], featuring adult content like infanticide, the outright racist treatment of the Roma people, the abuse of religious power and creepy lust displayed by one of the most vile and frighteningly realistic villains in the history of animated films, and on-screen deaths for heroes and villains alike. As a result, it has [[NightmareFuel more than enough frightening moments and concepts to go around for the whole family]]. With all of this and the heavy adult themes present in the picture, it's startling to realize that the film somehow got a G rating from the MPAA...
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* [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vlcsnap_2017_06_07_21h41m14s229.png The gargoyle]] that randomly comes to life just to finish off Frollo.
* The statues of the saints looking down at Frollo, and of the Virgin Mother's eyes opening as the lightning flashes in the prologue.
** Also [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vlcsnap_2017_04_21_19h35m39s204.png this one]] seems to be staring at the viewer instead of Frollo.
** It's not just the Virgin Mary either. The angels guarding her and even the baby Jesus in her arms have their eyes opened by the lightning flash. That brief frame is terrifying.
* Frollo being scared [[KickTheSonOfABitch for the first time in his life.]] Those statues seem to be staring into his very soul, and one can't help but shake the feeling that they ''really are.'' Especially when it focuses on the Virgin Mary...
* Quasimodo tied to a spinning platform as the crowd [[ProducePelting throws eggs and vegetables at him]] is ''terrifying''. Fortunately, Esmeralda's intervention cuts the scene short.
** Ironically, it's a [[{{Bowdlerization}} bowdlerized]] version of a similar scene in the book, where he's whipped and mocked by the crowd.
** For some it is worse in this version because of how unprovoked that was. At least in the book, he was guilty of attempted kidnapping and nobody knew that the true culprit was Frollo.
** In the musical however, [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs he is whipped, and completely without provocation]].
* The sheer look on Quasimodo's face after he breaks free of the chains holding him to Notre Dame. Having never seen Quasimodo truly angry before, it is [[https://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213005/5132045-4484381303-38159.jpg frightening]].
* '''''Judge Claude Frollo.''''' Let's just say there's a reason why he's considered the darkest and the most evil Disney villain ever conceived.
** Tony Jay's voice for Frollo counts, making his song more frightening.
** Most of the other Creator/{{Disney}} villains were terrifying and evil in their own right, but Frollo trumps a majority of them due to following in [[WesternAnimation/{{Cinderella}} Lady Tremaine's]] footsteps in that he is [[BadassNormal very, very normal and realistic]]. It gets better. The chances of you personally getting attacked by [[WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989 a sea witch]], [[WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}} a sorcerer]], or [[WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs an evil queen]] are slim to none. And [[BadassBoast no one]] [[VillainWithGoodPublicity has good publicity]] [[MemeticMutation like]] [[WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast Gaston]]. But are there genocidal racists out there in RealLife who [[HidingBehindReligion use religion to justify their beliefs and actions]], and convince other people to follow them? Oh, yes.
** His ''very introduction'' applies. As the Roma are surrounded by soldiers, a huge shadow casts itself over the wall, revealed to be Frollo on his Bruiser of a horse. The pure ''terror'' in the male Romani's voice is as if he has come face to face with the devil itself; a textbook OhCrap reaction.
--->'''''Judge Claude Frollo!'''''
** The part of the opening number that describes Frollo pretty much says it all about this guy:
--->''Judge Claude Frollo longed to purge the world of vice and sin.\\
And he saw corruption everywhere...'' '''''except within.'''''
** It also echoes uncomfortably with modern third-world citizens who desperately seek passage to a better life in nations who mercilessly exploit them like slaves, only to run afoul of monsters like Frollo who refuse to treat them like humans for "daring" to even ''[[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence exist]]''.
** During the opening sequence, Frollo looks positively ''demonic'' as he chases down and ultimately ''kills'' Quasimodo's poor mother, a Romani woman whose swaddled baby he initially thinks is stolen goods. There's no discretion either--you get to see Frollo kill her ''on-screen''. And if not for the Archdeacon's intervention, this guy would very well have murdered baby Quasimodo himself as well. And what's worse is that Frollo thinks he is guiltless and in the right (not to mention how he immediately, unhesitatingly moves to take another innocent life when he realizes what the woman actually had)!
*** Heck, the way he talks about it with the Archdeacon. He's very much treating the whole situation as if it's just any other day for him, just another part of his job. That someone could be so casual about killing a woman and then trying to drown her child, "monster" or not, is chilling.
*** There is a very brief moment when baby Quasimodo cries, and Frollo realizes what he's actually holding... then he moves the cloth from the baby's face, discovers his deformity, and immediately begins to look around for somewhere to dispose of the poor infant. It's the move from what might have been stunned realization, to disgust and panic that really sells it. Not that Frollo wouldn't have justified himself somehow anyway, but that one moment somehow makes it even worse.
----> '''Frollo''': A baby..? (''moves the cloth and freezes in horror'') '''A monster!'''
*** In the Finnish dub, Frollo's tone of voice when he says "This is an unholy demon. I'm sending it back to Hell, where it belongs," is [[ButForMeItWasTuesday as if he's discussing the weather]].
*** And what does he say after the archdeacon guilt-trips him into raising Quasimodo after killing his mother? "Just so that he's kept locked up where no one else can see... even this foul creature may yet prove to be of use to me". Yeah, it's not like he's actually gonna treat Quasi as a human being or anything.
----> '''Clopin:''' And Frollo gave the child a cruel name. A name that means "half-formed". ''Quasimodo!''
** His obsession with Esmeralda is quite [[NoYay creepy]] indeed, and not at all subtle.
** The VillainSong, "Hellfire". ''[[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic Fabulous]]'' [[IncrediblyLongNote singer]], [[ArsonMurderAndAdmiration though.]]
*** When he says "Let her taste the fires of hell," you can actually hear the faint screaming of a woman being burned alive!
*** Can't forget the hellish monk choir draped in red robes who provides the chorus of ''Mea culpa, mea maxima culpa''. (Latin for "my fault, my most grievous fault" or "I am guilty, I am so guilty" in more modern language) said right after he says he's not the one at fault.[[note]]This is actually a part of the mass, called "Confiteor" or "I confess", which can be summed up as everyone in church admitting they have sinned often and much with thoughts, words, deeds and neglect, and asking, among others, the Virgin Mary, the saints and angels and each other, to pray for them.[[/note]]
*** It's a blink-and-you'll-miss moment, but when Frollo rushes through the monk choir, watch the direction of their [[NothingIsScarier unseen]] gaze. Their heads turn toward Frollo, as though their invisible eyes are laser-guided to follow him.
*** Frollo is interrupted mid-song by one of his minions, who's telling him that Esmeralda has disappeared from the Cathedral. What makes this moment truly disturbing is that Frollo, for one moment, looks like he's forgotten where he is, and what he's doing.
----> '''Soldier:''' Minister Frollo, the gypsy has escaped!
----> '''Frollo:''' ''What?!''
----> '''Soldier:''' She's nowhere in the cathedral. She's gone.
----> '''Frollo:''' But ''how'', I - never mind. Get out, [[BadBoss you idiot!]] I'll find her. I'll find her if I have to ''burn down all of Paris!''
*** In [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EaUFqwnzC4 the French version]], instead of saying "She will be mine, or she will burn!", he says "Be mine, or my passion will take you to Hell!"[[note]]French: ''"Sois mienne, ma passion te mènera en Enfer"''[[/note]]. The message is clear in this version; Frollo will be the one raising hell.
*** In the Italian version, he sings ''I'm waiting for you in Hell'' instead of just ''Choose me or your pyre''. He knows this obsession will damn him but it's got him too tight. That's a sign that he's '''really''' losing it, in a horrifying way.
** Frollo looks very much like the bastard spawn of [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Lex Luthor]] and [[Franchise/{{Batman}} The Joker]] when he grins, and his cold glare is equally as frightening.
** When confronting Quasimodo for helping Esmeralda escape Notre Dame, Frollo goes from his [[TranquilFury usually polite and cold tone]] to flat-out UnstoppableRage as he shouts at Quasimodo and [[KickTheDog destroys his model replica of Paris]]. Quasimodo is lying on the floor, looking like a frightened child. [[FridgeHorror Makes one wonder if this was the first time Frollo ever shouted at Quasimodo like that]].
---> '''Frollo''': Isn't this one new? It's awfully good. Looks very much like the... Gypsy girl. I know... you helped her '''''[[SuddenlyShouting ESCAPE!]]''''' And now all of Paris is burning because of you!
---> '''Quasimodo''': Sh-She was kind to me, Master!
---> '''Frollo''': '''YOU IDIOT!!! THAT WASN'T KINDNESS, IT WAS CUNNING! SHE'S A GYPSY! GYPSIES ARE INCAPABLE OF FEELING REAL LOVE! THINK, BOY!''' '''''THINK OF YOUR MOTHER!!!'''''
** The following dialogue as Frollo recomposes himself doesn't help much either.
--->'''Frollo''': But what chance could a poor, misshapen child like you have against her heathen treachery? Well, never you mind, Quasimodo. ''[Pulls a dagger from his robe and stabs the Esmeralda doll with it.]'' She'll be out of our lives soon enough. ''[Holds the doll over a candle flame.]'' I will free you from her evil spell. ''[Tosses the incinerated doll to the floor.]'' She will torment you no longer.
** The scene where he confronts Esmeralda while she's about to be burned telling her to "Choose me or the fire". Rather than fear, Esmeralda looks at him with visible disgust right after letting her choice be plainly known to him with a powerful SpitefulSpit. She would rather face her death, via one of the most horrifically painful methods of execution imaginable, no less, than take Frollo's offer, so repulsed is she by how loathsome and monstrously evil Frollo has become in his lust for her.
* Earlier, the scene where he starts groping her when she uses Notre Dame as a sanctuary, along with smelling her hair and lustfully caressing her neck. It's quite shocking to see a realistic portrayal of someone getting sexually harassed.
* The scene where Frollo explains his viewpoint of the Roma people to Phoebus. Hello, blatant genocide metaphor in a ''family-friendly movie.'' Especially bad for those of us whose relatives were, and continue to be, oppressed by anti-Roma (or anti-almost anything else, really) sentiment.
-->'''Frollo:''' I have been... ''[[DeadlyEuphemism taking care]]'' of the Gypsies. ''[Crushes some ants under a finger with each word.]'' One... by... ''one.'' Yet, for all my success, they have ''thrived''! ''[Pulls off a tile to reveal an ants' nest.]'' I believe that they have a safe haven within the walls of this very city... a ''[[{{Dehumanization}} nest]]'' if you will. They call it the ''[Incredulous scoff.]'' "Court of Miracles".
-->'''Phoebus:''' What are we going to do about it, sir?\\
'''Frollo:''' ''[Smirks, flips the tile over and smashes it back down, crushing every last ant under it, then grinding it a bit to make sure.]''\\
'''Phoebus:''' ''[visibly disturbed]'' ...You make your point quite vividly, sir.
** Phoebus first meeting Judge Frollo, in the castle torture chamber, where you get to hear the sound of the previous captain of the guard being ''tortured to death''. Frollo even advices the TortureTechnician to [[ATasteOfTheLash whip]] his victim slower, because doing it too fast will make the new pain drown out the old one (which he speaks of [[ButForMeItWasTuesday in the most eerily casual manner possible]]). The captain's crime? "Disappointing" Frollo.
* The burning of the miller's house just because he and his family were suspected of hiding Romani. Said family included at least one child and a ''baby''. Frollo even tries to make Phoebus carry out the evil deed, (which he ''very'' understandably refuses to do) and then tries to execute him when he rescues the people involved.
** Just how ''FAST'' the house becomes engulfed is horrific to watch. Imagine what it would be like from ''inside'' the house!
* The last twenty-five seconds of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CVwYC7WrP0 "Paris Burning"]] is the embodiment of fear and terror itself. In the film, it's played over a clip looking over the skyline of Paris, glowing bright red from all the fire and the smoke filling the sky, as though Frollo really has brought Hellfire to Earth.
** After Notre Dame itself was partially destroyed by fire on April 15th 2019, it's become even worse in hindsight.
** ''And'' if you listen to the scene with headphones, as Frollo contemplates Esmeralda's escape, you can hear the muffled screams and cries of the townspeople - men, women, and children.
* Imagine for a moment you are one of the soldiers under Frollo's command. Specifically, one of those attacking the Cathedral. You've stuck by the Judge through all of his monstrosities. The city is in revolt, the Cathedral is throwing beams, stone and molten lead at you. All of this is explainable. Then the birds attack, and everything is put into perspective. The Cathedral isn't attacking you. {{God}} is, and now [[{{Satan}} the Devil]] has a claim on your soul. Pious or not, that would be terrifying.
* If you interpret the gargoyles strictly as part of Quasi's imagination, not to mention how he behaves around Frollo, it really puts into perspective how much psychological damage has been done to this poor boy in his 20 years in isolation.
** Really, the fact that Quasimodo was ''raised'' by this madman, the fact that he's not stark raving mad himself is nothing short of a miracle. The Archdeacon might possibly have served as a tempering influence, but he's only in a handful of scenes, and almost all of Quasi's social interaction is with Frollo.
* The fact that the entrance to the Court of Miracles is through a gothic, eerie medieval graveyard inside the grave of a French Crusader that died in UsefulNotes/TheCrusades.
* Clopin giving a SlasherSmile when he was about to execute Quasimodo and Phoebus as spies. Thankfully Esmeralda stopped him before it was too late.
** The song beforehand qualifies too, [[LyricalDissonance if one takes the time to look at the lyrics]].
* If you don't like insects, the scene where Frollo lifts up the stone covering a nest of ants can be nauseating. Granted, they're just common ants which are completely harmless, but even to people who ''don't'' have insectophobia, an entire nest of them crawling over each other can be unsettling. Even worse is that Frollo uses and murders the ants to demonstrate that he's been killing off innocent Romani for decades one by one without fail in the hopes of finding their hideout to kill them all at once.
* The soundtrack is [[AwesomeMusic/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame awesomely terrifying all by itself]], but there's a GeniusBonus in the OminousLatinChanting you might not catch if you're not either a ClassicalMusic fan or know UsefulNotes/{{Latin|Language}}: namely, the chanting is not mere CanisLatinicus, but actually bits and pieces from the Requiem Mass text (which has been set to music many times by Classical composers, particularly [[Music/WolfgangAmadeusMozart Mozart]] and [[Music/GiuseppeVerdi Verdi]]), mostly "Kyrie Eleison" (meaning "Lord, have mercy", which can be as heartbreaking as it is nightmarish), but also the "Dies Irae" ("[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Day of Wrath]]", [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dies_irae#Text full text and translations]] at Wiki/{{Wikipedia}}) sequence, particularly when Frollo chases Quasimodo's mother up to Notre Dame. Two lines from the latter really stick out: ''"Quantus tremor est futurus, quando Judex est venturus"'' which roughly translates to ''"How great will be the quaking, when the Judge will come"''. The text itself refers to Judgment Day and the Apocalypse, which adds yet another brand of fuel to the mix all by itself, but in the context of the scene goes further still by taking on a new meaning as Quasimodo's mother is chased down by the Judge who will kill her and try to kill her baby.
* The climax:
** Frollo makes this chilling remark during his last encounter with the Archdeacon:
---> '''Archeacon:''' Frollo, have you gone mad?! I will not tolerate this assault on the House of God!
---> '''Frollo:''' Silence, you old fool! (''throws the Archdeacon down the stairs'') The hunchback and I have unfinished business to attend to. And this time, ''you will '''not''' interfere''.
** In the following scene, Frollo attempts to stab Quasimodo, but the latter manages to fight back and grab the knife. What follows is Quasimodo being covered in red light and wearing a DeathGlare as he advances on Frollo and raises the knife, and Frollo himself is terrified at this sudden show of violence, when Quasimodo gives a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech and throws the knife away instead. While Frollo would have had it coming, the fact that the protagonist of a Disney movie briefly considered ''stabbing'' someone to death is beyond creepy.
** Frollo chases after Quasimodo and Esmeralda onto the cathedral balcony. Losing track of his prey, he scans the dark balcony. He looks and sees the two hiding below the balcony gargoyles, and viciously attacks the duo with his sword, one swipe barely nicking Quasi's arm.
--->'''Frollo:''' Leaving so soon? ''[Proceeds to swipe his sword madly at them.]''
** In his insane rage, Frollo finally admits to Quasi the truth about his mother while letting out all the true hatred he concealed from the hunchback for the past two decades.
--->'''Frollo:''' I should've known you'd risk your life to save that Gypsy witch! Just as your own mother died trying to save you.\\
'''Quasimodo:''' What?\\
'''Frollo:''' And now, [[IShouldHaveDoneThisYearsAgo I'm going to do what I should've done]]... '''''''[[SuddenlyShouting TWENTY YEARS AGO!]]''''''' ''[Throws his cape over Quasi's face to try to toss him off the edge of the cathedral.]''
** His final scene is the image above for a reason. While watching it, notice the color of his eyes and teeth. They're white like Esmeralda's and Quasi's, until he climbs the gargoyle to decapitate the Roma, ''then they turn yellow.''
*** Frollo's last words. The way he says "And He shall smite the wicked and plunge them into the fiery pit" makes it clear: Frollo no longer sees himself as a soldier of God, but as ''God himself''. That shows how deep he fell.
*** The [[https://youtu.be/cNbv7fFNYMU?t=2m13s Swedish version]] manages to be very unnerving with his [[LaughingMad laugh now]] sounding not only deranged like in the original, but also like it comes from the very pits of hell itself.
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Changed line(s) 52 (click to see context) from:
*** In [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EaUFqwnzC4 the French version]], instead of saying "She will be bine, or she will burn!", he says "Be mine, or my passion will take you to Hell!"[[note]]French: ''"Sois mienne, ma passion te mènera en Enfer"''[[/note]]. The message is clear in this version; Frollo will be the one raising hell.
to:
*** In [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EaUFqwnzC4 the French version]], instead of saying "She will be bine, mine, or she will burn!", he says "Be mine, or my passion will take you to Hell!"[[note]]French: ''"Sois mienne, ma passion te mènera en Enfer"''[[/note]]. The message is clear in this version; Frollo will be the one raising hell.
