Most convincing artificial accents in the movies

[Balog]

Worse. Jessica Simpson's terribly exaggerated accent made my skin crawl. Nick Cage gets a free pass due to his fantastic performance in The Wicker Man.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6i2WRreARo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOpsbAUEe90

How did you like Wicker Man? I vaguely recall being intrigued at the time, but I never got around to watching it.

[lupinus]

I recall it sucked.

The original, much better.

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

How did you like Wicker Man? I vaguely recall being intrigued at the time, but I never got around to watching it.

Haven't seen it in full. I have only seen snippets of the film on youtube, and those make it seem very amusing/interesting/silly. Just by them, I'm sure it's a higher-caliber film than Zardoz. Overacting is great in an otherwise bad movie.

[doczinn]

Charlize Theron, who does a pretty good English accent too.

That's the one. And an endorsement from someone actually qualified to judge an English accent.

When people pull off successful English accents, are they regionally distinct ones, or just a general English, like the Midwestern English our newscasters use?

[Iain]

There aren't too many good examples that I can think of, and regional accents are so diverse here that I'd be as poor a judge of say a Cumbrian accent as most of you would be. Generally people like Paltrow manage a successful modern English, somewhat south-eastern accent. The kind of relatively neutral accent that newscasters would have if the BBC weren't so obsessed with regional accents.

I'm not always the best judge. For instance House still sounds like Hugh Laurie to me, I know he is doing an accent and I can tell he is doing it well, but it is only when I contrast a youtube clip of House with an interview that I can really hear it. I can tell the differences between the most general sorts of American accent, but I've offended Canadians before. I watch a Canadian show called Durham County, and they might as well be Americans for all I know. I was somewhat relieved to see Americans comment that Sarah Palin sounds sort of Minnesotan and they sound sort of Canadian.

Others attempting particular British regional accents is pretty much asking for trouble. Think **** van **** in Mary Poppins. Adam on Mythbusters does a funny sort of London/Essex accent, that makes me laugh in part because it's not quite right and he knows it.

[Balog]

Iain: what did you think of River's Cockney accent in Firefly?

[Harold Tuttle]

hey take off you hosers!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsgVspgy184

[S. Williamson]

I've offended Canadians before. I watch a Canadian show called Durham County, and they might as well be Americans for all I know.

Same thing with "Corner Gas."  I'd watched it for a couple of weeks before realizing it was set in Canada.

Why'd you censor Dick van Dyke's name?

[Regolith]

I'm not always the best judge. For instance House still sounds like Hugh Laurie to me, I know he is doing an accent and I can tell he is doing it well, but it is only when I contrast a youtube clip of House with an interview that I can really hear it. I can tell the differences between the most general sorts of American accent, but I've offended Canadians before. I watch a Canadian show called Durham County, and they might as well be Americans for all I know. I was somewhat relieved to see Americans comment that Sarah Palin sounds sort of Minnesotan and they sound sort of Canadian.

The "standard" Canadian and American accents are very, very close. I had a Canadian professor in college whose accent was so subtle it took me a week or two to figure out he wasn't from America.  It basically came down to how he said "about."  He didn't quite say "aboat" like some Canadians do, but it was definately different than how Americans tend to say it.

For a while I thought he might be from Minnesota or North Dakota, but people from those states tend to actually have a greater difference in accents from other Americans than many Canadians. 

[Iain]

Balog - uh, I've obviously not been watching too closely. Hadn't noticed she was doing any sort of accent.

Thinking about it, I saw a film recently with Alan Tudyk, he was playing an Englishman. Might be wrong, but seem to recall he did a decent job.

The **** van **** thing, it's a Family Guy joke from probably the funniest thing they ever did - whole episode was about the FCC. Also because that accent was awful, some sort of hideous Australian Cockney thing.

[Balog]

Balog - uh, I've obviously not been watching too closely. Hadn't noticed she was doing any sort of accent.

It was only from one episode.

[Perd Hapley]

Thinking about it, I saw a film recently with Alan Tudyk, he was playing an Englishman. Might be wrong, but seem to recall he did a decent job.

A Knight's Tale, perhaps?  "I WILL FONG YOU!" 

Or was it the Sandra Bullock movie, where he plays a Gay German? 


River Tam mimicks Badger's accent when she talks to him in the Shindig episode.  They said he coached her.

[Balog]

Shindig, thank you. I'd forgotten which episode it was.

[erictank]

Balog - uh, I've obviously not been watching too closely. Hadn't noticed she was doing any sort of accent.

Thinking about it, I saw a film recently with Alan Tudyk, he was playing an Englishman. Might be wrong, but seem to recall he did a decent job.

Death at a Funeral?  Saw that myself recently, after hearing him talk about doing that movie at a con this past February.  Pretty good movie, and his accent sounded pretty good (to this American, anyways).

I will add my vote for Hugh Laurie and Hugh Jackman.  Hearing Walter Koenig speak in person for the first time was rather jarring, after years of hearing his (stereotypical) Russian accent as Chekov on Star Trek.  For that matter, so was James Doohan, after hearing Scotty's "Scottish" accent.  Not saying they were necessarily well done - just that it was strange hearing their normal voices, after years of exposure to their character voices.

[Perd Hapley]

I can tell the differences between the most general sorts of American accent, but I've offended complimented Canadians before.

I'm sure that's what you meant to say.   

[Perd Hapley]

Most of us here are qualified to judge the authenticity of exactly one accent, and that's American. 

American is a lot more than one accent.  Same goes for English accents, and others.   

[Iain]

I'm sure that's what you meant to say.  

It was in Gibraltar and I had been thrown off accent-wise by the rather odd local accent. They weren't that happy about it.

I remembered that River had done a cockney accent when I was out walking just now. It was the sort of accent that even English actresses do when cast as Nancy in Oliver Twist. I've not met anyone who talks like that, but that was the character she was playing. The other chap was a Dickensian 19th century east end rogue.

eric - it was Death at a Funeral, thanks. He spent rather a lot of time naked on a roof. Decent British farce.

[Balog]

I remembered that River had done a cockney accent when I was out walking just now. It was the sort of accent that even English actresses do when cast as Nancy in Oliver Twist. I've not met anyone who talks like that.

Really? I thought Cockney was a legitimate accent. Is that not the case?

[Iain]

Really? I thought Cockney was a legitimate accent. Is that not the case?

It is an real, although you're as likely to hear the much derided mockney as proper cockney these days. I was referring as much to the dialogue, idioms etc as the accent really, it's all a bit of a dramatic stereotype now I think. As edited in above, that's pretty much what they were aiming for in that episode though, the cockney chap was a deliberate stereotype.

[Perd Hapley]

River's cockney sounds a little forced to me, at least at one point in the scene.  I think that's probably the real test of a put-on accent, unless the audience expects your character to have a very specific accent.   

[seeker_two]

I can tell the differences between the most general sorts of American accent, but I've offended Canadians before.

Offending Canadians takes a lot of effort, eh....kudos on your accomplishment... 

[Perd Hapley]

I would like to nominate Barack Obama, for the category of good American accent. 

Whether he's a Kenyan Muslim, or a European socialist, or a replicant from the planet Zimlak 8, he does a pretty good job of faking it. 


(It is a joke.)

[alex_trebek]

It is hard to say if some of these actors have natural accents, since some moved to America at an early age.  As others pointed out, American accents are probably the easiest to do.  So maybe these actors are just really good at suppressing their natural accent?  I am assuming that if they spent any decent amount of time in their native countries, they have some sort of accent to show for it.

Milla Jovovich

Russell Crowe

Gerard Butler

Kate Beckinsale

[Jocassee]

DiCaprio did a great job with his South African accent in Blood Diamond. Peter Vosloo who played Coetzee is a native, but he sounded good too!

[Iain]

DiCaprio did a great job with his South African accent in Blood Diamond. Peter Vosloo who played Coetzee is a native, but he sounded good too!

You're an African aren't you? Several saffas on my rugby board thought DiCaprio's accent was painful.