Acting and accents

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In Hollywood, a common sign of great acting is the ability of an actor to imitate a foreign accent. The ability to master regional dialects is also very important, but what it really does is separate the actors and actresses that are masters of phonology from the one who are not. Actors usually perfect this through exposure, which allows the brain to appreciate the subtle nuances that make the accent unique. Classic examples of this are Gandhi, Leonardo DiCaprio in the more recent Blood Diamond, Denzel Washington in Cry Freedom, and Don Cheadle in Hotel Rwanda. Also, Robert Knepper, who is best known as Theodore Bagwell in TV Drama Prison Break, has been widely praised for an accurate Southern accent he adopted for the aforementioned role, as well as a Russian accent as Yuri in the 2007 movie Hitman.

Criticism of this is that the perception of an accurate foreign accent are rarely considered accurate by the speakers of this accent. The perception or sensitivity of others to accents means that generalizations are passed off as acceptable, such as Brad Pitt's Jamaican accent in Meet Joe Black.^[1] Another example of this is Denzel Washington in Cry Freedom. Most Americans were impressed with his imitation but few South Africans would have seen it as an accurate South African accent. Another example of this is African-American imitations of Jamaican accents which are perceived as comical by actual Jamaicans. In recent cinema Angelina Jolie attempted a Greek accent in the film Alexander that was said by critics to be distracting.^[2] In 2000 Pitt played the role of a Travelling Irish boxer in the gangster movie Snatch. An accent teacher was employed purely to help Brad Pitt (Mickey) speak "Pikey". Renée Zellweger perfected her English accent so successfully for Bridget Jones' Diary that even co-actor, and English native, Hugh Grant was surprised to hear her natural American accent.

Similarly, James Marsters first gained mainstream exposure portraying the British vampire Spike on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a role he continued for over seven years. His accent became so accurate (Marsters based it upon the accent of British co-star Anthony Stewart Head) that many people, even fans, are surprised to hear him speak out of character in his natural, Californian accent. This is also true for Oregon-born David Anders, whose english accents as Julian Sark on Alias and Adam Monroe on Heroes were so accurate that many fans did not know he was born and raised in America.

On the other hand, to the average Dane, Meryl Streep's accent when playing the role of Danish author Karen Blixen in Out of Africa may, or may not, be heard as a that of a person speaking English with a foreign accent. But to an English speaker familiar with the very specific accent of Danish speakers when they speak English, her accent does not even remotely resemble a Danish person's.

Conversely, British actor Hugh Laurie in the starring role of television series House has adopted an American accent so successfully that many do not realize that he is not American-born. Hugh Jackman's American accent in the movie The Prestige was very realistic and may have led American viewers to believe that he is in fact American-born himself rather than his true Australian heritage. Anthony LaPaglia, the Australian star of Without a Trace adopted an American accent when he was searching for work in the US and has since (to his regret) lost his Australian accent. Another example of this is Joely Richardson in the TV series Nip/Tuck. Gary Oldman has become known for playing eccentrics and for his mastery of accents.^[3]

The problem with accents being integrated into Hollywood the way that they are is it is a hit or miss with most actors. As mentioned by H Ottenheimer, the most authentic way to learn a culture is to immerse yourself in it. Coaches and tapes can start you in the right direction, but more often that not a forced accent is noticeable on film and can detract from the film's authenticity. Unfortunately, most actors and actresses cannot just immerse themselves into a regional or foreign culture because of their popularity, so this is an issue that will be very difficult to fix.

[edit] Stereotypes of accents in films

Notably, in Disney films from the 1990s onward, English accents are generally employed to serve one of two purposes: slapstick comedy or evil genius.^[4] Examples include Aladdin (the Sultan and Jafar, respectively), The Lion King (Zazu and Scar, respectively), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Victor the Gargoyle and Frollo, respectively), and Pocahontas (Wiggins and Ratcliffe, respectively - both of whom happen to be played by the same actor, American David Ogden Stiers).