Board of Review named Scarface as one of the best pictures of 1932. However, at the time of release in 1932, there was a general public outcry about this motion picture and the gangster genre in general which negatively affected the film's box-office receipts. Jack Alicoate gave Scarface a scathing review in The Film Daily that the violence and subject matter of the film left him with, "the distinct feeling of nausea". He goes on to say the film "should never have been made" and showing the film would "do more harm to the motion picture industry, and everyone connected with it, than any picture ever shown." Although Ben Hecht was often critical of his work for Hollywood, he admitted that Scarface was "the best-directed picture [he has] seen". Hecht did, however, criticize Muni's performance. Having known Al Capone, Hecht claimed that Muni portrayed Capone as too "silent" and "moody", more similar to "Hitler". Some critics disagreed with the casting of British actor Boris Karloff, believing his accent was out of place in a gangster film; a New York Times article stated "his British accent is hardly suitable to the role". However, other critics considered him a high point. The film earned $600,000 at the box office and while Scarface was more of a financial success than Hughes's other films at the time, due to the large cost of production, it is unlikely the film did better than break even. The film initiated outrage among Italian organizations and individuals of Italian descent, remarking a tendency of filmmakers to portray gangsters and bootleggers in their films as Italian. In the film, an Italian American makes a speech condemning gangster activities; this was added later in production to appease censors. This, however, did not prevent the Italian embassy from disapproving Scarface. Believing the film to be offensive to the Italian community, the Order Sons of Italy in America formally denounced the film and other groups urged community members to boycott the film and other films derogatory towards Italians or Italian-Americans. Will Hays wrote to the ambassador in Italy, excusing himself from scrutiny by stating the film was an anachronism because it had been delayed in production for two years and was not representative of the current practice of censorship at the time. Nazi Germany permanently prohibited showings of the film. Some cities in England banned the film as well, believing the British