Why one of world's highest-grossing films ever was a flop: Story of Hollywood box office bomb that drove billionaire mad

Hindustan Times

4 hours ago

It was in 1927 that 21-year-old businessman Howard Hughes decided to turn film director. At that point, he had already produced three films, the last of which even won an Oscar for its director. But Hughes wanted to make the biggest film ever. The billionaire had considerable funds at his disposal as one of the world's richest men. So, he set out to make the greatest war epic ever, and redefined how Hollywood made war dramas. In the process, he burned up a lot of money, made some back, and almost lost his sanity.
World War I drama Hell's Angels began filming in 1927 as a silent film. But soon, Jazz Singer, the first talkie, was released in theatres. Hughes, now wanted to reshoot the film with sound, because he did not want to make anything 'out-dated'. Hence, the film began production again. Marshal Neilan was cast as director, but he quit. Luther Reed came on board and left quickly, so eventually Hughes took over the reins himself.
Hughes employed English filmmaker James Whale as the 'director of dialogue' to assist him. In reality, Whale directed most of the film's dramatic sequences, while Hughes focussed on the battle scenes, particularly the aerial scenes. Being an aviator himself, Hughes wanted to bring an authentic and realistic depiction of aerial battle. Several real aircraft were used in the film, with cameras mounted on the wings and nose to capture fight scenes in the air. The budget ballooned as Hughes, the perfectionist, would often search for the right locations and even weather conditions to recreate World War I battles. 137 pilots were used in just the climactic battle sequence.
Hughes' marketing claimed that the film cost $4 million, but the real production budget, as per film historians, was $2.8 million. This made it considerably costlier than most films made at that point. Most big films tried to keep their budgets under $1 million.
Hell's Angels premiered with an event that was the biggest in Hollywood. At its world premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on May 27, 1930, hundreds of cars lined the streets, police had to deploy extra security, and thousands came to watch the stars on the red carpet. The film was praised by critics and audiences for the dogfight scenes, but received criticism for the 'mundane' plot. Still, Hell's Angels broke box office records. It collected $2.5 million, making it one of the highest-grossing films at the time, only behind Ben-Hur ($9 million), Wings ($3.6 million), and All Quiet on the Western Front ($3 million). Yet, Hell's Angels was a box office failure, as it could not recover its investment.
Howard Hughes took the criticism for Hell's Angels personally, particularly the focus on 'profanity' and 'obscenity'. His next film, Scarface, was also delayed by censors due to the depiction of violence. Already known for his eccentricities, Hughes retreated into near solitude after these two films. The billionaire returned to direct The Outlaw a decade later, but it, too, was delayed for three years. The eccentric billionaire eventually turned into a recluse in his later years, with many harshly labelling him crazy.
But Hell's Angels proved to be just the right thing for one person - lead star Jean Harlow. The starlet was 19 when the film released, and it was her debut. She immediately shot to stardom and would dominate Hollywood through the 30s. Even though she died just seven years later, aged 26, Harlow had done enough in her short career to be ranked number 22 on the American Film Institute's greatest female screen legends list.