# Pseudo-foreign accents & languages in movies & TV **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 23, 2007, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126 "2007-03-23T03:28:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Malodorous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47774/32.png) [@Malodorous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malodorous)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/21 "2007-03-23T09:13:11Z")
[QUOTE=John DiFool] The German in **Die Hard** is apparently gibberish from what I understand (accents probably bad too but I dunno). [/QUOTE] Well, of course you can’t expect Hollywood to be able to afford _real_ Germans. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/22 "2007-03-23T09:19:23Z")
[QUOTE=Tapioca Dextrin] I didn’t think much of Borat’s Kazak. Aslo, the writing on the DVD is some sort of fake pseudo-Russian. [/QUOTE] _Please_ tell me you’re not joking. I want to be able to tell all my friends about the guy who thought _Borat_ was a documentary. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/23 "2007-03-23T11:21:22Z")
While Dick Van Dyke’s English accent was notably awful, I’d also like to nominate **all** the British actors in BBC productions who try to do American accents. They must all take classes from the same instructors, because they all speak the same bizarre mixture that sounds like nothing I’ve ever heard any American speak. At the other end of the scale, there’s Hugh Laurie, whose American accent (on the show HOUSE) is impeccable. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/24 "2007-03-23T11:30:29Z")
[QUOTE=C K Dexter Haven] At the other end of the scale, there’s Hugh Laurie, whose American accent (on the show HOUSE) is impeccable. [/QUOTE] Hugo Weaving is right up there with him, as Agent Smith in the Matrix. ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/25 "2007-03-23T11:30:37Z")
[QUOTE=Alessan] Furlen currently plays Russeau the Crazy Frenchwoman on **Lost**. Her “French” accent sounds exactly like it did on B5. [/QUOTE] There was an interview where someone asked the producers of _Lost_ if there were any questions they would never answer; their first response was “Why the crazy French woman speaks with an Eastern European accent.” ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/26 "2007-03-23T12:43:59Z")
I love Leo McKern, but when he tries to do an American accent (or a Canadian one) he sounds totally unnatural and unlike anhything I’ve ever heard. For good American accents, I nominate Bob Hoskins. I couldn’t believe his tough-guy voice in Roger Rabbit came from the same mouth that usually speaks with a very strong non-American voice. ---
**Author:** ![Merkwurdigliebe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/74df32/32.png) [@Merkwurdigliebe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merkwurdigliebe)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/27 "2007-03-23T12:44:06Z")
On edit I forgot to put it in, but this is response to **Liberal** I disagree here. I’m sure he can do a proper American accent, but in the Matrix it seemed, to me, that he was doing a kind of weird American accent on purpose in order to make it seem more surreal. It reminds me a lot of Christian Bale in American Psycho. He’s kind of go the same thing going on. I haven’t seen the new Batman, but I’ve heard his American accent is perfect, but in American Psycho, he sort of mutated it into this weird non-existent one. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/28 "2007-03-23T12:57:01Z")
In the **Doctor Who** episode, “The Chase,” one actor was playing a tour guide at the Empire State Building. He was supposed to have a New York/Jewish accent, but his version makes him sound like he was from another planet. In the British miniseries **Flickers** (or perhaps its sequel **Sprokets** , there was a supposedly Jewish-American film producer. The way he said “OY VEY” (same stress on both syllables) made it clear he had no idea how he should have sounded. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/29 "2007-03-23T12:59:50Z")
[QUOTE=Merkwurdigliebe] I’m sure [Hugo Weaving] can do a proper American accent, but in the Matrix it seemed, to me, that he was doing a kind of weird American accent on purpose in order to make it seem more surreal. [/QUOTE] I think that had to do more with his cadence and tone than with his accent, but I do agree that he gave it a rather ominous feel. Which seems appropriate and was, I think, pretty effective. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/30 "2007-03-23T13:05:01Z")
[QUOTE=Quiddity Glomfuster] Nope. Meryl Streep was supposed to be an Italian woman in _The Bridges of Madison County_. I have no idea what that accent was, but it sure was nothing like Italian. I still do not understand why people think she’s so great. [/QUOTE] Agreed, most overrated actress ever IMHO. * * * I was just watching Captain Blood two nights ago. I love **Basil Rathborne**. A truly great actor; however, in Capt Blood he plays a French Pirate Captain. If anyone ever wondered what the inspiration was for the outrageous accents of the French K’niggits in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, I believe it was Basil in Capt Blood. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/31 "2007-03-23T13:23:12Z")
After only seeing Rachel Griffith in films where she played Americans, I saw her in “The Hard Word” and thought ‘what a shitty attempt at an Australian accent’- then found out later she WAS Australian. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/32 "2007-03-23T13:45:38Z")
[QUOTE=Tapioca Dextrin] I didn’t think much of Borat’s Kazak. Aslo, the writing on the DVD is some sort of fake pseudo-Russian. [/QUOTE] It’s not fake. It’s actually real Cyrillic, and says what it should say. “Special Features” and all that. ---
**Author:** ![tiger\_lily](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/96bed5/32.png) [@tiger\_lily](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiger_lily)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/33 "2007-03-23T13:48:04Z")
[QUOTE=C K Dexter Haven] At the other end of the scale, there’s Hugh Laurie, whose American accent (on the show HOUSE) is impeccable. [/QUOTE] Don’t forget Jamie Bamber on _Battlestar Galactica._ I was surprised the first time I heard a British accent coming out of his mouth during an interview. As to the OP, I don’t recall there being any gibberish German in _Die Hard_. What I do recall is a number of actors attempting to speak German with a very heavy American/British English accent. (I love Alan Rickman, but he did NOT pass muster on that score.) IME, native English speakers have a really tough time with certain sounds in German, so they either gloss over sounds or exaggerate them in an effort to pronounce them… and the net result can be pretty close to unintelligible at times. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/34 "2007-03-23T13:54:05Z")
[QUOTE=Alessan] Mira Furlen is Yugoslavian, actually. [/quote] Nope, not talking about her. I’m talking about the woman who was acting leader of Earth following what’s his names sucicide. She said something like, “I don’t know whether we should give you a medal or shoot you as a traitor. In Russian during the old days, we would have done both.” She might appear in a few episodes but she wasn’t a major player. Marc ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/35 "2007-03-23T14:03:27Z")
Brent Spiner’s hillbilly on Night Court and “android” on Star Trek TNG were both damn good. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/36 "2007-03-23T14:46:52Z")
[QUOTE=tiger lily] Don’t forget Jamie Bamber on _Battlestar Galactica._ I was surprised the first time I heard a British accent coming out of his mouth during an interview. [/QUOTE] I’d first watched him in the _Horatio Hornblower_ series, so I was surprised when I heard the _American_ accent during the show. And then promptly swooned all over again. 😉 I thought Natalie Portman’s accent in _V for Vendetta_ was all right… ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/37 "2007-03-23T14:48:41Z")
Okay then: request for title change to " Pseudo-foreign accents & languages in movies & TV". Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/38 "2007-03-23T16:37:43Z")
[QUOTE=MGibson] Nope, not talking about her. I’m talking about the woman who was acting leader of Earth following what’s his names sucicide. She said something like, “I don’t know whether we should give you a medal or shoot you as a traitor. In Russian during the old days, we would have done both.” She might appear in a few episodes but she wasn’t a major player. Marc [/QUOTE] That would be [Beata Pozniak](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0694796/) playing President Susanna Luchenko in exactly one episode, [_Rising Star_](http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/countries/us/guide/087.html). Where do I get my geek certificate? The dude was [Gary McGurk](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570331/) playing (Vice) President Clark in four episodes. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/39 "2007-03-23T16:43:47Z")
[QUOTE=John DiFool] Argh. You can consider “accents” to fall within my rubric I guess, but I meant to refer to fake versions of real languages (long day at work syndrome). The German in **Die Hard** is apparently gibberish from what I understand (accents probably bad too but I dunno). [/QUOTE] Was it? I may be confusing this with another movie, but I speak German, and remember hearing authentic German dialog on that movie. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2007, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126/40 "2007-03-23T16:55:15Z")
[QUOTE=C K Dexter Haven] At the other end of the scale, there’s Hugh Laurie, whose American accent (on the show HOUSE) is impeccable. [/QUOTE] …Am I being whoosed? Laurie’s accent is the most bizarre thing. It’s like he’s chewing every word. Where the hell is House supposed to be from? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pseudo-foreign-accents-languages-in-movies-tv/397126.md?page=3)