Howard Hughes "Hell's Angels" and "Scarface" - Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, aerospace engineer, film maker and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world. As a maverick film producer, Hughes gained prominence in Hollywood from the late 1920s, making big-budget and often, controversial films like The Racket (1928), Hell's Angels (1930), Scarface (1932) and The Outlaw (1943). Hughes was one of the most influential aviators in history: he set multiple world air speed records, built the Hughes H-1 Racer and H-4 "Hercules".
Hell's Angels is a 1930 American war film, directed by Howard Hughes and starring Jean Harlow, Ben Lyon, and James Hall. The film, which was produced by Hughes and written by Harry Behn and Howard Estabrook, centers on the combat pilots of World War I. It was released by United Artists and, despite its initial poor performance at the box office, eventually earned its production costs twice over. Controversy during the Hell's Angels production contributed to the film's notoriety, including the accidental deaths of several pilots, an inflated budget, a lawsuit against a competitor (The Dawn Patrol), and repeated postponements of the release date. Originally shot as a silent film, Hughes retooled the film over a lengthy gestation period and Hell's Angels is now hailed as one of the first sound blockbuster action films.
Scarface is a 1983 American epic crime film directed by Brian De Palma, written by Oliver Stone, produced by Martin Bregman and starring Al Pacino as Tony Montana. A contemporary remake of the 1932 film of the same name, the film tells the story of a Cuban refugee who comes to Miami in 1980 with the Mariel Boatlift, and becomes a drug cartel kingpin during the cocaine boom of the 1980s. The film is dedicated to Howard Hawks and Ben Hecht, the director and principal screenwriter, respectively, of the original film.
The initial critical response to Scarface was mixed, garnering criticism for excessive violence and graphic language. The Cuban community in Miami objected to the film's portrayal of Cubans as criminals and drug traffickers.
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