Worst accents in film?

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Worst accents in film?

Postby Samuel_Scott » 05 Mar 2012 19:30

Just watched Elephant White (2.5/5 IMO) which co-stars a favourite actor of mine, Kevin Bacon. If you watch The Woodsman, you'll see how fantastic Bacon can be, but in Elephant White he plays an English arms dealer and his English accent is truly disturbing. Really one of the worst I have ever heard and really took away from the rest of the movie.

So which performances do you hate for the bad accents?
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Jim_Mcdonaugh » 05 Mar 2012 20:36

Kevin is an american so british accent is simply impossible for him. Playing some dude from Texas is one thing. Trying to be from London or Liverpool is quite different.

The worst accent in movies is russian. When some american fella trying to sound like he's from Moscow, that's just killing me. :lol: "Comrads! For Motherland!" I especially love those WWII movies like Enemy At The Gates. The whole movie was ruined by those phony accents. :-D And of course Red Heat... :lol:
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Paul_Lewis » 05 Mar 2012 21:53

I saw Elephant White recently too, Sam, and thought exactly the same.

Lithuanian-born Laurence Harvey's wonky attempt at a West Yorkshire accent in Clayton's Room at the Top springs immediately to mind. The film's a classic, but Harvey's accent is all over the shop :lol:

I was always a fan (for all the wrong reasons) of Brando's Irish accent in the wacky The Missouri Breaks too.

This'll give you a chuckle or two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0ycNdtiT3Q
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Samuel_Scott » 05 Mar 2012 23:32

Jim_Mcdonaugh wrote:The worst accent in movies is russian. When some american fella trying to sound like he's from Moscow, that's just killing me. :lol: "Comrads! For Motherland!" I especially love those WWII movies like Enemy At The Gates. The whole movie was ruined by those phony accents. :-D And of course Red Heat... :lol:


Yeah, so many Western actors try to play Russians. I have a Serbian friend and he always laughs at UK/US actors trying to do a Serbian accent. It sounds OK to me, probably because I am not used to the dialects etc but he hates it.

Paul_Lewis wrote:I saw Elephant White recently too, Sam, and thought exactly the same.


What did you think of the ending?

[Reveal] Spoiler:
I didn't like the spirituality way it went with Mai.
That and Bacon's accent made it a 2.5/5 rather than a 3. Hounsou was OK, but the film generally felt like recent DTV efforts from Christian Slater and Cuba Gooding Jr. I really enjoy these dodgy DTV actioner's though. :oops:

Paul_Lewis wrote:This'll give you a chuckle or two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0ycNdtiT3Q


Brilliant. :lol:

I just remembered another horrible accent. I recently watched Hell Ride and Vinnie Jones' American accent was also embarassingly bad for anyone watching.
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Jim_Mcdonaugh » 06 Mar 2012 08:56

I recently watched Hell Ride and Vinnie Jones' American accent was also embarassingly bad for anyone watching.


The whole movie is over the top so his accent kinda fits perfectly to me. :lol: :lol: :lol:

I didn't like the spirituality way it went with Mai.


The scriptwriter was probably stoned at that point. :) The whole movie is garbage.

It sounds OK to me, probably because I am not used to the dialects etc but he hates it.


Exactly so.
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Tim_Rogerson » 06 Mar 2012 16:47

Keanu Reeves in Dracula.

Don Cheadle in Oceans 11.

or Ralph Bates in I Don't Want to be Born.

No excuse for most of these as the characters could be any nationality.
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Jim_Mcdonaugh » 06 Mar 2012 17:05

Tim_Rogerson wrote:Keanu Reeves in Dracula.

Don Cheadle in Oceans 11.

or Ralph Bates in I Don't Want to be Born.

No excuse for most of these as the characters could be any nationality.


Atleast Don Cheadle didn't pretend to be a russian. :lol:
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Stephen_Campbell » 15 Mar 2012 02:53

I think the worst accents I've ever heard were Keanu Reeves in Dracula, Tom Cruise/Nicole Kidman in Far and Away and Tommy Lee Jones in Blown Away ("Did ya see d'explooosion Liam?")

Russell Crowe playing Robin Hood as if he was from Drogheda was also interesting, and Antony Hopkins' attempts to do accents are usually ridiculous as well - in Legend of the Falls, he goes through about six!

I personally think when actors are doing a role with a strong accent, if they can't master it, they should take the Sean Connery Hunt for Red October route - just keep their own accent. He played a Russian sub captin and spoke with a thick Scottish brogue, but that's far far less distracting that, say, Mr. Reeves "I know where the baaaaastaaaaard sleeps, I brought him deaaaar, to Carrrfax Abbaaaay." Mickey Rourke did a good Irish accent in A Prayer for the Dying, and that's fine, that's great, if you can pull it off. But then take Leonardo DiCaptrio's South African accent in Blood Diamond, laughable, and totally takes you out of the movie. Connery in October though? For like, 60 seconds, it's "Oh look, there's a Russian with a Scottish accent", and then you forget about it and get on with the movie. Sadly, most actors don't take this route though. I mean, I personally found Crowe's weird Dublin-esque accent in Robin Hood far more distracting than Costner's American twang in Prince of Thieves.
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Jim_Mcdonaugh » 15 Mar 2012 09:59

Stephen_Campbell wrote:I think the worst accents I've ever heard were Keanu Reeves in Dracula, Tom Cruise/Nicole Kidman in Far and Away and Tommy Lee Jones in Blown Away ("Did ya see d'explooosion Liam?")

Russell Crowe playing Robin Hood as if he was from Drogheda was also interesting, and Antony Hopkins' attempts to do accents are usually ridiculous as well - in Legend of the Falls, he goes through about six!

I personally think when actors are doing a role with a strong accent, if they can't master it, they should take the Sean Connery Hunt for Red October route - just keep their own accent. He played a Russian sub captin and spoke with a thick Scottish brogue, but that's far far less distracting that, say, Mr. Reeves "I know where the baaaaastaaaaard sleeps, I brought him deaaaar, to Carrrfax Abbaaaay." Mickey Rourke did a good Irish accent in A Prayer for the Dying, and that's fine, that's great, if you can pull it off. But then take Leonardo DiCaptrio's South African accent in Blood Diamond, laughable, and totally takes you out of the movie. Connery in October though? For like, 60 seconds, it's "Oh look, there's a Russian with a Scottish accent", and then you forget about it and get on with the movie. Sadly, most actors don't take this route though. I mean, I personally found Crowe's weird Dublin-esque accent in Robin Hood far more distracting than Costner's American twang in Prince of Thieves.


I totally agree with you. Irish/scottish accents are the most difficult to produce. I never could. :-D
I also find Nicolas Cage's accent in Con Air to be over the top ridicules. The worst and the most hilarious southern accent I've ever heard! :lol: :lol: Some folks don't have that gift, that's all.
And, of course, when Anthony Hopkins was playing Hitler in The Bunker... I couldn't stop laughing the whole movie! The most silly WWII movie as I recall. It's just the whole idea of a brit playing Hitler is truly amazing. Simply watch Downfall/Der Untergang and you'll understand what I'm talking about.

So, it's very very simple. If you're american/brit/aussie, for f(u)cks sake don't play russians/germans/serbians/the rest of the world! You gonna do everyone a huge favor. :lol:
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby James_Morton » 23 Sep 2012 17:16

One of the worst accents has got to be Richard Gere's 'Irish' accent in THE JACKAL
Absolutely terrible but funny :-D
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Samuel_Scott » 23 Sep 2012 18:39

Welcome to the forums James!
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Jim_Mcdonaugh » 23 Sep 2012 19:24

James_Morton wrote:One of the worst accents has got to be Richard Gere's 'Irish' accent in THE JACKAL
Absolutely terrible but funny :-D


I bet you haven't heard William Forsyth's irish accent in Hack! It's a freaking blast. :lol:
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Tim_Rogerson » 24 Sep 2012 12:19

What I don't really understand is that in a lot of these cases there is no reason for the accent at all. Don Cheadle didn't have to be British in Oceans 11 for example.

Nobody has yet mentioned Dick van Dyke in Mary Poppins. Presumably he is on a pedestal so high not even Keanu reeves could reach it.
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Leigh_Riding » 19 Dec 2012 03:54

Has nobody realised how rough Mel Gibson's accent is in Lethal Weapon, or is it just me?
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby James_Morton » 15 May 2014 16:19

Leigh_Riding wrote:Has nobody realised how rough Mel Gibson's accent is in Lethal Weapon, or is it just me?


maybe his ott drinking had something to do with it.... :-D
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Re: Worst accents in film?

Postby Alister_Manson » 17 May 2014 00:13

Any attempt by Sam Worthington to sound like anything other than Australian tends to lead to disastrous results, Texas Killing Fields and Terminator Salvation being two of the worst examples.
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