Wosrt Irish Accents

[Flick James]

With Saint Patrick’s Day around the corner, I thought it would be fun to talk about the really, really bad Irish accents you hear in so many movies. It never ceases to amaze me that this widely appealing and commonly identified accent is so badly butchered on a regular basis. Now, I happen to be married to a woman born in Ireland, and have travelled there multiple times, so my standards in Irish accents are higher than most Americans, but I still just don’t get it. You would think with as many actors as there are that are Irish that this wouldn’t be, but it is. Most non-Irish actors tend to produce it time and time again: the cartoon Irish accent that sounds like they’re imitating a leprechaun. “Where’s me lucky charms.”

Okay, a low-budget B-movie I can understand. But some of these big-budget films, you would think they would do either find an Irish actor, or if they insist on using a readily identifiable A-list American actor, do a better job in their accent work. I’m not saying they all have to be as good as Daniel Day Lewis (In the Name of the Father) or Cate Blanchett (Veronica Guerin), but come on.  Here is a list of some supposedly “good” films, containing some of the worst offenders of Irish caricature accents.

Tom Cruise (Far and Away): More like “far and away” the worst Irish accent ever. This was every bit worse than any of Colin Farrell’s attempts at an American accent, any day of the week.

Julia Roberts (Michael Collins): A cast full of mostly Irish actors and they throw in Julia Roberts in one of the worst accents ever. I keep imagining there’s an outtake reel from that movie with actors busting up over it.

Brad Pitt (The Devil’s Own): Apparently Brad did his research, travelled to Belfast and hung with some real IRA people, but still couldn’t get it.

Cameron Diaz and Leonardo DiCaprio (Gangs of New York): Okay, this was almost as bad as Tom Cruise. I can’t even imagine how horrified Daniel Day Lewis was throughout production.  His character didn’t do anywhere near as much butchering as Cameron and Leonardo did with their accents.

Okay there are some votes for some of the worst. What gems to you all have for ridiculous, cartoonish Irish accents through film history?

[Trevor]

Donald Sutherland in The Eagle Has Landed and Mickey Rourke in A Prayer For The Dying.   I remember thinking that if Mickey Rourke called Bob Hoskins "Fadda" once more I was going to sh*t on myself.  

Strange ~ I just realized that both of those books were written by Jack Higgins.

[Flick James]

Donald Sutherland in The Eagle Has Landed and Mickey Rourke in A Prayer For The Dying.  I remember thinking that if Mickey Rourke called Bob Hoskins "Fadda" once more I was going to sh*t on myself. 

Strange ~ I just realized that both of those books were written by Jack Higgins.

Agreed on both. I saw A Prayer for the Dying when I was in my late teens, and I remember thinking it was a decent movie at the time and as far as I knew his accent was genuine, but sounded a bit funny to me. Now I know better. I remember when he said "father" it sounded more fah-er.

[skuts]

Orson Welles had a horrific "irish" accent in Lady from Shanghai.

[Flick James]

I can't even imagine Orson Welles trying an Irish accent. It just doesn't seem to fit.

I think a common problem with Irish accents is that they are very regional. A Belfast accent (which which I'm very familiar) is very different from accents from the south. I remember watching Only the Lonely (1990) recently and thinking Maureen O'Hara's accent was not very good, only to learn later that she is a native Dubliner and that the Dublin accent is quite different from the rising Belfast accent, where to American ears statements often sound like questions and questions often sound like statements. My first trip to Belfast I found myself sometimes not realizing when someone was asking me a question and later wondering if they thought I was rude because I wasn't answering.

I'm not saying that Irish accents are easy, because they are not, it just seems that actors, even A-list actors, seem to take the easy leprechaun road too often.

[Ed, Ego and Superego]

Faith and Begorrah... No one mentioned John Wayne in the Quiet Man.  Wasn't he supposed to be Irish?
-Ed

[Flick James]

Ah, yes, The Quiet Man. I once talked to an Irishman who said that The Quiet Man was one the best cinematic examples of what the Irish are NOT like. I can't believe I didn't include it. I thought the last 20 years were bad in terms of using A-list actors for the box office appeal but who do horrible accents. John Wayne goes way beyond that. I mean, Genghis Khan? Hello?

[Psycho Circus]

Cameron Diaz and Leonardo DiCaprio (Gangs of New York): Okay, this was almost as bad as Tom Cruise. I can’t even imagine how horrified Daniel Day Lewis was throughout production.  His character didn’t do anywhere near as much butchering as Cameron and Leonardo did with their accents.

Wow, I didn't even realise they were supposed to be Irish!

[Flick James]

It's true, Circus. Scorcese has a fascination with covering the Irish-American underbelly lately, as he has pretty much done all he can do (and admirably) with the Italian-American experience. The problem is he is not doing it as well, probably because he doesn't have the same personal ethnic and cultural connection, but I applaud his attempts and he's made some decent films. I liked the Departed overall. His casting is where he is missing the boat.

[Jim H]

There's no question here.  Sean Connery in the Untouchables.  Do I even need to say anymore?

[zombie no.one]

Mick Jagger in Ned Kelly

[Trevor]

Phillip Noyce's Patriot Games boasts some weird accents, like Sean Bean and David Threlfall's accents. I also thought Patrick Bergin's accent was a little suspect, then I realized that he is Irish. Oopsie. 

[Trevor]

I just remembered Natasha McElhone and Jonathan Pryce in Ronin ~ the accents were great but I don't know if they were realistic enough. I also still don't know what was in that ^&%$# case, though. 

Jonathan Pryce [to Robert DeNiro] "You stchupid s**te! Yorra ded mun!" 

[Flick James]

Phillip Noyce's Patriot Games boasts some weird accents, like Sean Bean and David Threlfall's accents. I also thought Patrick Bergin's accent was a little suspect, then I realized that he is Irish. Oopsie. 

Heh. It can be confusing when a film has a bunch of attrocious faked Irish accents and one genuine one in there, they almost become guilty by association. It must be rough to be Brendon Gleason.

[ChocolateChipCharlie]

Richard Gere's Irish accent from THE JACKAL has got to be in the bottom 10.