One for our American cousins

[strugglinauthor]

Guys and gals,

I'm ashamed to say I've just been watching Night at the Museum 2. Well, I've just given up as it's pretty awful. But why oh why do American films always give the villain an English accent? Sometimes it's not even appropriate. Take Night at the Museum 2: the villain is Egyptian, the actor playing him is American (Hank Azaria) and what accent do they give him? You guessed it, an English one. Also they added a slightly effeminate lisp. Come on now.

I've heard it's because of Britain's colonial past but us Brits have been squabbling with the French, Spanish and Germans for centuries but our villains don't always have their accents. Most Yanks I've met have been genuine, warm people - so guys, give your film makers a slap and tell them stereotypes are soooo yesterday.

 

[Stuart Truman]

... us Brits have been squabbling with the French, Spanish and Germans for centuries

That's because we can. Haven't you travelled recently? Slap your passport around the Johnny Foreigner immigration chappy's face, bellow loudly "Don't you know who I am" and stomp through complaining loudly about everything. When communicating remember, S L O W L Y, LOUDLY and C L E A R L Y Works every time...

 

[strugglinauthor]

... us Brits have been squabbling with the French, Spanish and Germans for centuries

That's because we can. Haven't you travelled recently? Slap your passport around the Johnny Foreigner immigration chappy's face, bellow loudly "Don't you know who I am" and stomp through complaining loudly about everything. When communicating remember, S L O W L Y, LOUDLY and C L E A R L Y Works every time...

 

[Piper1]

Oh this might remind me of Highlander the movie, a Frenchman playing a Scot, a Scot playing an Egyptian who had traveled through Spain. Though they really didn't do much to mask their own accents, just the geography all muddled about. I think though that most Scottish, English, and Australian actors, that I'm a fan of that are from main stream cinema seem to pull off any accent they want off rather brilliantly.

 

[mcbeee]

And why wouldn't an Egyptian have an English accent? I went to the bank (in Canada) and the 100% Chinese lady helping me opened her mouth to speak and 100% Manchester came pouring out... I was a bit surprised, no more stereotyping for me

As for Yanqui actors with incredibly poor Brit accents, Ignore them, we do. 8)

 

[strugglinauthor]

And why wouldn't an Egyptian have an English accent? I went to the bank (in Canada) and the 100% Chinese lady helping me opened her mouth to speak and 100% Manchester came pouring out... I was a bit surprised, no more stereotyping for me

As for Yanqui actors with incredibly poor Brit accents, Ignore them, we do. 8)

It wasn't really the quality of the English accents I was driveling on about, old Hank's wasn't that bad in truth, it was more that the villain only seems to be a villain when he or she is speaking with a plummy English accent. Though to bring balance to this, Brits with cor-blimey accents seem to be exempt...so that's me OK then

 

[mcbeee]

It's just the movies , eh?

At least you didn't put yourself through the pain of watching the whole film, what torture ...!