Originally posted by -Pr-
Most Irish accents are just plain bad. Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise etc.Though as mentioned before, the Scots were pretty bad too.
I'd like to be put under the same coaching to see if I could do any better. It always makes me wonder: is it a very significant acting achievement or are they just not good at imitation? I may gain appreciation for what they do if I come off having a horrible accent.
Makes me think...would that change how most of you approach this thread if you got to go through the same coaching they do? It's about 1-2 hours of coaching, a day, for a month or two. That seems like a huge amount of coaching, to me. Some get only 2 weeks, but I can't think of any examples.
Originally posted by dadudemon
I'd like to be put under the same coaching to see if I could do any better. It always makes me wonder: is it a very significant acting achievement or are they just not good at imitation? I may gain appreciation for what they do if I come off having a horrible accent.Makes me think...would that change how most of you approach this thread if you got to go through the same coaching they do? It's about 1-2 hours of coaching, a day, for a month or two. That seems like a huge amount of coaching, to me. Some get only 2 weeks, but I can't think of any examples.
I honestly don't know; I think it's just a perception that Hollywood has when it comes to Ireland, the whole "oirish top of the mornin" thing. Until they move on, we're going to tend to get badly represented.
Thankfully it's not all doom and gloom though, as if you want an example of a good one, look at Matthew Goode in Leap Year. He's not perfect, but he's good. He even gets some of the slang right.
And to be honest I think the coaches can be as much to blame as the actors (when you look at what i mentioned above about perceptions).
Originally posted by Robtard
Kevin Costner did the absolute worst Boston accent in Thirteen Days.
Good point. American actors usually screw up other regional American accents that aren't their own.
Non-Southerners never sound natural when using a Southern accent; they always end up sounding like that rooster Foghorn Leghorn from Looney Toons. Sometimes its hard to take them seriously.
Well, as far as the over-the top Massachusetts accent goes, I work with a fella that has the worst accent I've ever heard. The actors couldn't get it thick enough (lol) in the movies to match this guy.
He says things like "dats Re TAH Ted" and "You gotta wom up ya foowd, fust". I have yet to see someone in a movie come close to this guy. However, stand-up comics can, at times, come close. 😐
Originally posted by Robtard
Ben Affleck goes a bit overboard in 'The Town' with his accent, despite being raised in Massachusetts.
But was he really going overboard, or was he just returning to his roots? Because that is his natural accent. Jennifer Garner and Reese Witherspoon both naturally have Southern accents, but their various roles require them to get rid of it. So then when they finally get a role that allows them to speak without coaching, people accusing them of "over doing" it.
Originally posted by Quiero Mota
But was he really going overboard, or was he just returning to his roots? Because that is his natural accent. Jennifer Garner and Reese Witherspoon both naturally have Southern accents, but their various roles require them to get rid of it. So then when they finally get a role that allows them to speak without coaching, people accusing them of "over doing" it.
It sounded somewhat forced, but then again, I'm no Boston accent specialist. A few others in the film sounded more natural to me though.
It's not his normal accent anymore either, when you hear him speech in interviews and whatnot, his Bostonian is only noticeable in certain words and it's usually very mild.
Originally posted by Robtard
It sounded somewhat forced, but then again, I'm no Boston accent specialist. A few others in the film sounded more natural to me though.It's not his normal accent anymore either, when you hear him speech in interviews and whatnot, his Bostonian is only noticeable in certain words and it's usually very mild.
Then he lost his accent over the years, and was simply returning to his roots in that role. Since he presumably talked that way growing up, then it probably takes little effort for him to revert to it. I started learning English when I was 8-years-old, and I had a very strong Mexican accent for many years afterward. I still do to a degree, but today its a lot more mild and relaxed. But I can still fall right back into the accent at will. So, I would imagine its the same for Affleck and other actors who had to unlearn their regional characteristics in order to sound like a more "normal" American.
Originally posted by -Pr-
I honestly don't know; I think it's just a perception that Hollywood has when it comes to Ireland, the whole "oirish top of the mornin" thing. Until they move on, we're going to tend to get badly represented.
That's the problem with the US film makers/actors and their attitudes towards getting Scottish, English Irish accents right. They seem to think that there is a blanket accent for each country as opposed to extremely different accents even over relatively short distances. The difference between scouse and manc accents is astonishing yet they are 20 miles apart.
The difference between Cork and Dublin accents too.
Now...As for my own Dundee accent...The Dundee accent is generally considered the ugliest Scottish accent there is.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ8DO90j9AY
Here's a perfect example of how bad it can be with one of our more famous residents...Kyle from The View.
Originally posted by jaden101
That's the problem with the US film makers/actors and their attitudes towards getting Scottish, English Irish accents right. They seem to think that there is a blanket accent for each country as opposed to extremely different accents even over relatively short distances. The difference between scouse and manc accents is astonishing yet they are 20 miles apart.The difference between Cork and Dublin accents too.
Now...As for my own Dundee accent...The Dundee accent is generally considered the ugliest Scottish accent there is.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ8DO90j9AY
Here's a perfect example of how bad it can be with one of our more famous residents...Kyle from The View.
aye. even dubliners have a hard time understanding the cork accent most of the time.