  Atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenide films with distorted trigonal
(1T$^\prime$) phase have been predicted to be candidates for realizing quantum
spin Hall effect. Growth of 1T$^\prime$ film and experimental investigation of
its electronic structure are critical. Here we report the electronic structure
of 1T$^\prime$-MoTe$_2$ films grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Growth of
the 1T$^\prime$-MoTe$_2$ film depends critically on the substrate temperature,
and successful growth of the film is indicated by streaky stripes in the
reflection high energy electron diffraction and sharp diffraction spots in low
energy electron diffraction. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy
measurements reveal a metallic behavior in the as-grown film with an overlap
between the conduction and valence bands. First principles calculation suggests
that a suitable tensile strain along the a-axis direction is needed to induce a
gap to make it an insulator. Our work not only reports the electronic structure
of MBE grown 1T$^\prime$-MoTe$_2$ films, but also provides insights for strain
engineering to make it possible for quantum spin Hall effect.
