Only Angels Have Wings is a 1939 American drama film directed by Howard Hawks, and starring Cary Grant and Jean Arthur, based on a story written by Hawks. The film also marked the first significant role in a major film for Rita Hayworth. It is generally regarded as being among Hawks' finest films, particularly in its portrayal of the professionalism of the pilots of the film, its atmosphere, and the flying sequences. The supporting cast features Thomas Mitchell and Richard Barthelmess.
Only Angels Have Wings | |
---|---|
Theatrical poster | |
Directed by | Howard Hawks |
Produced by | Howard Hawks |
Written by | Jules Furthman |
Story by | Howard Hawks |
Starring | Cary Grant Jean Arthur Rita Hayworth Thomas Mitchell |
Music by | Dimitri Tiomkin |
Cinematography | Joseph Walker Paul Mantz (aerial scenes) |
Edited by | Viola Lawrence |
Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 121 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $1,000,000 |
Only Angels Have Wings was based on a number of real incidents witnessed by Hawks, and although Air Mail (1932), Night Flight (1933), Ceiling Zero (1936, also directed by Hawks) and Flight From Glory (1937) have similar stories, they are not related.
In 2017, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Screenplay
Geoff Carter (Grant) is the head pilot and manager of Barranca Airways, a small, barely solvent company owned by "Dutchy" Van Ruyter (Sig Ruman) carrying airmail from the fictional South American port town of Barranca through a high pass in the Andes Mountains. Bonnie Lee (Arthur), a piano-playing entertainer, arrives on a banana boat one day. After making her acquaintance, Joe Souther (Noah Beery Jr) crashes and dies trying to land in fog later that day. Bonnie becomes infatuated with Geoff, despite his fatalistic attitude about the dangerous flying, and stays on in Barranca (not at his invitation, as he insists on telling her).
The situation is complicated by the appearance of pilot Bat MacPherson (Richard Barthelmess) and his wife, Geoff's old flame Judy (Rita Hayworth). McPherson cannot find work in the United States because he once bailed out of an airplane, leaving his mechanic — the brother of "Kid" Dabb (Thomas Mitchell), Carter's best friend — to be killed in the ensuing crash. When Geoff is forced to ground the Kid because of failing eyesight, he hires MacPherson on the understanding that he will fly the most dangerous assignments.
Dutchy will secure a lucrative government contract if he can provide reliable mail service during a six-month trial. On the last day of the probation period, bad weather closes the mountain pass. Geoff decides to try to fly a new Ford Trimotor over the mountains. The Kid asks to go with him as co-pilot. Geoff refuses, but then lets the Kid toss a coin to decide the matter. When it lands on the floor, Geoff discovers that the coin has two heads. Geoff still agrees to take him along. Just before leaving, Bonnie tries to talk Geoff out of going. She takes his gun out of his holster and points it at him. When she realizes that she cannot stop him, she drops the gun on the table, but it accidentally fires, hitting Geoff in the shoulder.
Unable to fly, Geoff lets MacPherson take his place. However, MacPherson and the Kid are unable to climb high enough; the plane stalls and falls off. Geoff tells them to turn around, but they decide to try to fly through the fogged-in pass. They encounter a flock of condors. One crashes through the windshield, paralyzing the Kid; another hits the No. 1 engine, setting it on fire. Later the No. 2 engine also catches fire. The Kid tells MacPherson to bail out, but he refuses. He manages to crash-land the burning Trimotor in Barranca. The Kid dies from a broken neck, but not before telling Geoff of MacPherson's valor. As a result, MacPherson is finally accepted by the other pilots.
Bonnie is torn between leaving and staying, and confronts Geoff in the hope he will ask her to stay. However, Geoff does not. Then the weather clears and Geoff has to rush off to secure the all-important contract. Before he goes, he offers to toss a coin to decide: heads, she stays; tails, she leaves. Bonnie is disappointed by his seemingly cavalier attitude. As he leaves, Geoff gives her the coin as a "souvenir." At first she is distraught, but then she discovers that the coin has heads on both sides.
As appearing in Only Angels Have Wings, (main roles and screen credits identified):
- Cary Grant as Geoff Carter
- Jean Arthur as Bonnie Lee
- Richard Barthelmess as Bat MacPherson
- Rita Hayworth as Judy MacPherson
- Thomas Mitchell as "Kid" Dabb
- Allyn Joslyn as Les Peters
- Sig Ruman as John "Dutchy" Van Ruyter
- Victor Kilian as "Sparks" Reynolds
- John Carroll as "Gent" Shelton
- Don Barry as "Tex" Gordon
- Noah Beery, Jr. as Joe Souther
- Manuel Álvarez Maciste as The Singer (as Maciste)
- Milisa Sierra as Lily (as Milissa Sierra)
- Lucio Villegas as Doctor
- Pat Flaherty as Mike
- Pedro Regas as Pancho
- Pat West as Baldy
Pre-production and casting
The film's original script outline was written by Anne Wigton; the working title originally was Plane No. 4. Howard Hawks re-wrote the film's scenario himself, based on a story that he wrote in 1938 entitled Plane from Barranca. While he was scouting locations several years earlier, for the filming of Viva Villa!, Hawks had been especially inspired by the stoic aviation personnel that he had met in Mexico. The film's final script was written and re-written throughout the film's production, mostly by Hawks and Jules Furthman, but also with contributions by Eleanore Griffin and William Rankin.
Hawks had previously worked with Cary Grant the year before on Bringing up Baby and this was the second of five collaborations between the director and star.
He cast Jean Arthur in the leading role of Bonnie Lee after appraising her acting in several films made by Frank Capra.
Hawks then hired silent film star Richard Barthelmess for the role of Bat MacPherson. Barthelmess's career had gradually diminished since sound films became popular in the late 1920s and was a controversial choice, mainly because he had recently had a botched plastic surgery operation on the skin under his eyes that resulted in permanent X-shaped scars under both of his eyes. Barthelmess usually wore heavy make-up to hide the scars, but Hawks wanted to use the scars for the character.
Hawks had originally cast Dorothy Comingore in the role of Judy MacPherson, but studio head Harry Cohn had been grooming a young starlet that would be advanced for the role. With backing from Cohn, her agent then insisted that Hawks give Rita Hayworth a screen test, which eventually resulted in Hayworth being cast in the role.
Filming
Shooting of Only Angels Have Wings began on December 19, 1938 at the Columbia Studio Ranch and Hawks shot the film in chronological sequence whenever possible. Hawks and Arthur initially found working together difficult and Arthur would often argue with Hawks on set. Hawks was attempting to coach Arthur to play a variation of the classical "Hawksian Woman Archetype", but Arthur often felt uncomfortable with his direction. Eventually, she unhappily agreed to play the role as he directed her. Years later after Arthur saw Lauren Bacall's performance in To Have and Have Not, Arthur apologized to Hawks and told him that she finally understood what he had wanted from her (epitomized in Bacall's repetition and emphasis on the paradoxical line "I'm hard to get ... all you have to do is ask.") Hawks later said that he considered Arthur to have been good in the film.
Initial shooting was completed on March 24, 1939, 31 days over its shooting schedule. This was followed with several weeks of second unit shooting of aircraft flying in various locations in the western United States. A few re-takes were shot in April with Cary Grant and Victor Kilian. Two days of re-shoots with Rita Hayworth were also shot, but were directed by Charles Vidor.
Aircraft used in the production
The "cast" also starred a 1929 Hamilton Metalplane, Ford Trimotor and TravelAir 6000 single engine monoplane. All of these types accurately represented the types of aircraft flying in the period depicted by the film. The Metalplane was the airplane Joe Souther crashes while trying to land in heavy fog, and was only used for ground shots. In 2008, one of the movie prop Hamiltons used in the simulated flying scenes for this aircraft was discovered to still exist. The Pilgrim was used in the exciting mine rescue flying scene, while the Ford Trimotor was featured in another dramatic landing that ends in a fiery crash. Midway through the film, Paul Mantz flew a Boeing Model 100 biplane in a spirited aerobatic performance, reprising his earlier scene in Flight From Glory. Only Angels Have Wings has become very popular among enthusiasts of the aircraft of the golden age of aviation.
Twelve days after the film's final re-shoots were completed, Only Angels Have Wings premiered in Los Angeles at the Pantages Theater on May 10, 1939. Its official world premiere occurred the next day at Radio City Music Hall. It was heavily promoted by Columbia Studios and ended up making $143,000 on its initial two-week run at radio City Music Hall, and earned over one million dollars overall. It was the third-highest-grossing film of 1939. The film was also Rita Hayworth's breakout role and helped make her a major Hollywood star, with Hayworth appearing on the cover of Look magazine after the film's success.
Only Angels Have Wings received good reviews on its release, with Abel Green of Variety comparing it favorably to Flight From Glory and praised Barthelmess's performance. Frank S. Nugent in his review for The New York Times focused on the excitement found in the aerial scenes, also recognizing the talents of the star-studded cast, "Mr. Hawks has staged his flying sequences brilliantly ... He has made proper use of the amiable performing talents of Mr. Grant, Miss Arthur, Thomas Mitchell, Mr. Barthelmess, Sig Rumann and the rest."
Only Angels have Wings was later selected as one of 12 films representing the U.S. at the first Cannes Film Festival. However, the festival was canceled due to events leading up to World War II.
On Metacritic, the film holds a score of 86 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "universal acclaim."
Radio adaptations
Two weeks after the film's premiere, Only Angels Have Wings was adapted as a radio play for the May 29, 1939, broadcast of Lux Radio Theater. The film's principal actors Cary Grant, Jean Arthur, Rita Hayworth, Richard Barthlemess and Thomas Mitchell all reprised their roles, alongside several others.
Request Movie Now
Watch movie Only Angels Have Wings online on Amazon
Watch movie Only Angels Have Wings online
Watch The Movie On Prime
Aag Ka Dariya Full HD Movie Download
Chor Mandli Full HD Movie Download
Taaqatwar Full HD Movie Download
Gharana (1989) Full HD Movie Download
Dhoondte Reh Jaoge (2009) Full HD Movie Download
Qaidi (1984) Full HD Movie Download
404 Full HD Movie Download
Ganda Hendathi Full HD Movie Download
Prince-A Stupid Fellow Full HD Movie Download
Moggina Manasu Full HD Movie Download
Gopala Rao Gari Ammayi Full HD Movie Download
Aaj Ka Hindustani Full HD Movie Download
Aaj Ka Naya Kamina Full HD Movie Download
Kudumbam Full HD Movie Download
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Full HD Movie Download
Sharktopus Full HD Movie Download
King Soloman Full HD Movie Download
Jodhaa Akbar Full HD Movie Download
Bangaru Bhoomi Full HD Movie Download
Tiger Ramadu Full HD Movie Download
Faasle Full HD Movie Download
Download latest Movie from bollywood
Request for Download movie Only Angels Have Wings
- Bollywood movies
- Latest Bollywood movies
- Download all bengali movies
- Download all bhojpuri movies
- Download all english movies
- Download all gujarati movies
- Download all hindi movies
- Download all kannada movies
- Download all malayalam movies
- Download all marathi movies
- Download all oriya movies
- Download all punjabi movies
- Download all tamil movies
- Download all telugu movies
- Bollywood action movies
- Bollywood adventure movies
- Bollywood animation movies
- Bollywood classical movies
- Bollywood comedy movies
- Bollywood crime movies
- Bollywood devotional movies
- Bollywood documentary movies
- Bollywood drama movies
- Bollywood family movies
- Bollywood fantasy movies
- Bollywood historical movies
- Bollywood history movies
- Bollywood horror movies
- Bollywood musical movies
- Bollywood mystery movies
- Bollywood mythological movies
- Bollywood patriotic movies
- Bollywood romance movies
- Bollywood romantic movies
- Bollywood sci-fi movies
- Bollywood social movies
- Bollywood spiritual movies
- Bollywood sports movies
- Bollywood suspense movies
- Bollywood thriller movies
- Bollywood war movies
- Hot actress list
- Hot gujarati actress list
- Hot tamil actress list
- Hot bhojpuri actress list
- Hot assam actress list
- Hot bihari actress list
- Hot jammu and kashmir actress list
- Hot gujarati actress list
- Hot haryana actress list
- Hot konkani actress list
- Hot marathi actress list
- Hot odia actress list
- Hot punjabi actress list
- Hot rajasthani actress list
- Hot kannada actress list
- Hot malayalam actress list
- Hot telugu actress list
- Hot tulu actress list
- Hot Actress list from Indian city
- Hot actress list from ahmedabad
- Hot actress list from alappuzha
- Hot actress list from bangalore
- Hot actress list from bangalore
- Hot actress list from bhopal
- Hot actress list from chandigarh
- Hot actress list from chennai
- Hot actress list from guwahati
- Hot actress list from hyderabad, india
- Hot actress list from indore
- Hot actress list from jaipur
- Hot actress list from kannur
- Hot actress list from kochi
- Hot actress list from kolkata
- Hot actress list from kollam
- Hot actress list from kottayam
- Hot actress list from kozhikode
- Hot actress list from lucknow
- Hot actress list from madurai
- Hot actress list from mangalore
- Hot actress list from mumbai
- Hot actress list from mysore
- Hot actress list from new delhi
- Hot actress list from patna
- Hot actress list from pune
- Hot actress list from thiruvananthapuram
- Hot actress list from thrissur
- Hot actress list from tiruchirappalli
- Hot actress list from vijayawada
- Hot actress list from visakhapatnam
- All Bollywood Movies
- Bollywood Celeb
- >Art Director
- >Audiography
- >Background Music
- >Banner
- >Choreographer
- >Cinematographer
- >Costume Designer
- >Dialogue Writer
- >Director
- >Distributor
- >Editor
- >Executive Producer
- >Hair Stylist
- >Lyricist
- >Music Director
- >Photographer
- >Playback Singers
- >Presenter
- >Producer
- >Production Company
- >Production Designer
- >Screenplay
- >Singer
- >Sound
- >Actor
- >Story Writer
- >Studio
- >Video Director
- >Miscellaneous
- >Publicity (pro)
- >Web Creator
- >Production Labs
- >Publicity Design
- >Publicity Stills
- >Writer
- >Miscellaneous Artists
- >Visual Effects
- >Reporter
- >Music Company
- >Shooting Studios
- >Picturised On
- >Line Producer
- >Co Producer
- >Asst Director
- >Casting Director
- >Cinematography
- >Choreography
- >Dialouge
- >Editing
- >Lyrics
- >Music
- >Story
- >Playback Singer Female
- >Playback Singer Male
- >Actor In A Comic Role (male/female)
- >Child Artiste
- >Ensemble Cast
- >Actor Popular Choice (male)
- >Actor Popular Choice (female)
- >Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Song Of The Year
- >Actor In Supporting Role
- >Actress In Supporting Role
- >Actor In Leading Role
- >Art Direction
- >Actress In Leading Role
- >Sound Recording
- >Costume Design
- >Special Effects
- >Action
- >Actor In A Negative Role
- >Lifetime Achievement Award
- >Cinematic Exellence (director)
- >Cinematic Exellence (male)
- >Cinematic Exellence (female)
- >International Male Icon
- >International Female Icon
- >Actor In A Supporting Role (male)
- >Actor In A Supporting Role (female)
- >Actor In A Comic Role
- >Playback Singer (male)
- >Playback Singer (female)
- >Most Promising Debut (female)
- >Most Promising Debut (male)
- >Most Promising Director
- >Sound Design
- >Lifetime Jodi
- >Marketed Film
- >Jury Award For Best Actor
- >Jury Award For Best Actress
- >Jury Award For Best Film
- >Jury Award For Best Director
- >Playback Singer(male)
- >Lifetime Acheivement Award (male)
- >Excellence Award
- >Jodi Award
- >Performer Of The Year
- >Presented By