Film: Design & Architecture

Hell’s Angels (1930)

Even though this entire blog post is about the use of color in this film, I needed an introduction image.

Hell’s Angels is a 1930 American war film and one of the first sound blockbuster action films. Directed and produced by Howard Hughes and starring Jean Harlow, Ben Lyon, and James Hall, this film had been originally conceived as a silent film. But after completing the silent version, Hughes decided to scrap the film and reshoot most of it with sound. By 1930, the production had cost $4,000,000, an unrivaled amount until 1940, when the final cost of Gone With the Wind was tallied. The plot is less than stellar, but the visuals are mesmerizing, making this film a must-see.