Rent Hell's Angels (1930)
3.7 of 5 from 73 ratings
2h 7min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
A high-flying feat of adventure filmmaking and a testament to the audacious, spare-no-expense vision of Howard Hughes, this landmark aviation epic remains exhilarating both for its daredevil aerial sequences and its nervy pre-Code punch. With the onset of World War I, two British brothers recruited into the Royal Flying Corps (Ben Lyon and James Hall) find their bond tested by their differing attitudes toward the war and their love for the same woman (Jean Harlow in her bombshell breakthrough). The product of a notoriously long and dangerous production that resulted in the deaths of multiple crew members, 'Hell's Angels' broke new technical ground, making use of early sound and color technologies, and capturing some of the most thrilling dogfight scenes ever filmed. - Actors:
- Ben Lyon, James Hall, Jean Harlow, John Darrow, Lucien Prival, Frank Clarke, Roy Wilson, Douglas Gilmore, Jane Winton, Evelyn Hall, William B. Davidson, Wyndham Standing, Lena Malena, Marian Marsh, Carl von Haartman
- Directors:
- Howard Hughes, Edmund Goulding, James Whale
- Producers:
- Howard Hughes
- Writers:
- Harry Behn, Howard Estabrook, Marshall Neilan, Joseph Moncure March
- Others:
- Harry Perry, Gaetano Gaudio
- Studio:
- Universal Pictures
- Genres:
- Action & Adventure, Classics, Drama
- Collections:
- Cinema and the First World War, Drama Films & TV, The Instant Expert's Guide, The Instant Expert's Guide to Howard Hawks, Top 10 Films About Planes and Pilots, Top Films
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 24/11/2025
- Run Time:
- 131 minutes
- Languages:
- English Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Various
- Colour:
- Colour and B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- New interview with Robert Legato, the visual-effects supervisor for the Howard Hughes biopic 'The Aviator', on the groundbreaking aerial visuals of 'Hell's Angels'
- New interview with critic Farran Smith Nehme about actor Jean Harlow
- Outtakes and rushes from the film, with commentary by Harlow biographer David Stenn
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 24/11/2025
- Run Time:
- 131 minutes
- Languages:
- English LPCM Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- DVD Regions:
- Region 2
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- Colour and B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
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Reviews (1) of Hell's Angels
Pre-Code Top Gun - Hell's Angels review by griggs
The first surprise isn’t the aerial carnage — it’s how cheeky this thing is. Pre-Code Hollywood turns up like it’s had two drinks too many: Jean Harlow strolls in with a grin and a libido, and the film doesn’t rush to wag a finger at her. For a war picture, that’s bracing.
It’s also more tangled than the poster version of patriotism. The Oxford stretch with Karl, the German friend, lets you feel how quickly loyalties curdle once uniforms enter the room. And the Zeppelin raid over London isn’t just spectacle — even with the film pulling its punch at the last second, the threat sticks.
Then the dogfights arrive and they’re astonishing: clear, heavy, and frightening, like men wrestling in a sky full of metal. It’s the Royal Flying Corps, even if the American accents sometimes wobble the illusion. Hughes aimed for maximum and mostly got it — a mad, expensive swing that connects
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.