Most convincing non Irish actor in an Irish role.

darkdubh

Theres always threads about worst Irish accent in a film,Tom Cruise in Far And Away and the like but are there any instances of outsiders convincingly portraying an Irish character on screen?Now it can be a bit tricky defining who is and isin't Irish in the case of someone like Aidan Quinn who was born in the States but spent a considerable amount of their childhood in Ireland.So for arguments sake lets say someone who did not grow up in the old sod(that probably rules out Anjelica Heuston,I know).First choice for me is Ian Harte,a scouser,whos played Cork in Michael Collins,Monaghan inThe Butcher Boy,Belfast Loyalist in Nothing Personal and Dub in Thousands Are Sailing,pretty convincingly each time.

Into The Blue

Daniel day Lewis, my left foot
Brad Pitt, snatch

dirkmeister

I loved John Hurt as The Bird O'Donnell.

MakeEmLaugh

Into The Blue wrote: »

Brad Pitt, snatch

Pitt's performance was fun, but it was hardly convincing. His accent was all over the shop.

I thought John C. Reilly's Irish accent in Gangs of New York was pretty good, though I haven't seen it in years.

RobbingBandit

Alan Rickman as De Valera in Michael Collins.

Aimeee

I think Pete Poslethwaite did a pretty good Giuseppe Conlon, In the Name of the Father. Though it's been years since I've watched that movie, I just remember at the time he impressed me.

Dirty Dingus McGee

Ewan McGregors Irish Accent in Angels and Demons was decent enough.

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

Ewan McGregors Irish Accent in Angels and Demons was decent enough.

Not sure if your trolling or not?
It was horrendous.

NachoBusiness

Thought for a thick Glaswegian accented James McAvoy, he did alright in Inside I'm Dancing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hL1duOVGEgk

Gwynplaine

Tom Cruise in Far and Away.

Eugene Norman

Gwynplaine wrote: »

Tom Cruise in Far and Away.

You didn't even read the OP's very first sentence.

Eugene Norman

Minnie Driver Circle Of Friends.

Eugene Norman

Not a movie but Coogan in Moone Boy is spot on.

Elmo

Ironically Angela Lansbury starred in some made for TV film (not Murder She Wrote, where they had horrendous accents) and she did a perfect Irish accent.

Brad Pitt in Snatch.

Elmo

Eugene Norman wrote: »

Not a movie but Coogan in Moone Boy is spot on.

Judy Dench in Philomena.

Ipso

I think Jon Voight done a good one in The General.

Curly Judge

Leo McKern in Ryan's Daughter.

crushproof

Ipso wrote: »

I think Jon Voight done a good one in The General.

+1, no idea how he pulled that one off. Must have stayed up in the Phoenix Park for a few weeks.

Billy86

Granted he's lived in Cork for years to a mother from Mayo and a father 'of Irish descent' so he doesn't really qualify as a complete outsider, but Steve Coogan probably does a range of Irish accents better than I do.

Christ, he can even do a northern accent on helium!

Ipso

Billy86 wrote: »

Granted he's lived in Cork for years to a mother from Mayo and a father 'of Irish descent' so he doesn't really qualify as a complete outsider, but Steve Coogan probably does a range of Irish accents better than I do.

Christ, he can even do a northern accent on helium!

Ders more to Steve Coogan dan dis.

Billy86

Ipso wrote: »

Ders more to Steve Coogan dan dis.

Oh I know, it's just all I could find on a really quick youtube search.

pinksoir

I thought Kate Hudson did a good upper-middleclass north Dublin accent in About Adam. At the time of seeing it I'd no idea who she was and only realised she wasn't Irish when I saw her in another movie.

Looper007

Will Poulter in Glassland, he pulled off one of the best Dublin accents I heard from someone who's not from here.

R P McMurphy

Anthony Brophy as coco prunty in the run of the country nailed the long border drawl

razorblunt

Brad Pitt in Snatch was fantastic, come on it's an A-list Hollywood star playing a traveller, that's almost an impossible task. Jason Flemyng alongside him made an awful attempt in the few scenes he had with line.

I still can't decide on James Cromwell in LA Confidential, first time I saw it I thought he was Irish just adding a stronger "brogue" but I saw it a few weeks back and found it twiddly dee. Better watch one more time to be sure ... to be sure!

Adamocovic

Has Paddy Considine been mentioned? Been a while since I watched In America but I remember thinking at the time that his Irish accent was very good. Not sure how big he was before it but was the first film I watched him in, and thought he was Irish during it!

It's been a long time since I watched the film so maybe my memory is hazy, hope I don't rewatch to discover it was a poor irish accent :P

Looper007

Adamocovic wrote: »

Has Paddy Considine been mentioned? Been a while since I watched In America but I remember thinking at the time that his Irish accent was very good. Not sure how big he was before it but was the first film I watched him in, and thought he was Irish during it!

It's been a long time since I watched the film so maybe my memory is hazy, hope I don't rewatch to discover it was a poor irish accent :P

Like Steve Coogan, both his parents are Irish so no shock he pulled off the accent.

Adamocovic

Looper007 wrote: »

Like Steve Coogan, both his parents are Irish so no shock he pulled off the accent.

Wasn't aware! Himself and Coogan are very good at accents.

Larbre34

The wife was watching Tara Road and I couldn't place the Irish actress, though she looked familar.

Turned out it was Olivia Williams, not Irish, but spot on neutral Irish accent.


I'd like to nominate Patrick Bergin and Pierce Brosnan as Irish men who still manage to make themselves sound un-Irish, when trying to be Irish. If you see what I mean.

kupus

Veronica Guerin actress forget her name, I remember thinking the accent was pretty good.

Hrududu

Larbre34 wrote: »

I'd like to nominate Patrick Bergin and Pierce Brosnan as Irish men who still manage to make themselves sound un-Irish, when trying to be Irish. If you see what I mean.

I'll never forget seeing the trailer for Evelyn in the cinema and breaking myself laughing at Pierce Brosnans accent. "Where's me dhhhhaughthhher?"

Baggly

kupus wrote: »

Veronica Guerin actress forget her name, I remember thinking the accent was pretty good.

Cate Blanchett

MrWalsh

Surely Brad Pitts accent in Snatch wouldnt be considered to be Irish? It was a traveller accent, probably sounded terrible to a traveller. I wouldnt consider travellers to have Irish accents.

I thought yer man in Braveheart who played the mad Irishman Stephen did a good Irish accent. "He wasnt right, in the head".

darkdubh

MrWalsh wrote: »

Surely Brad Pitts accent in Snatch wouldnt be considered to be Irish? It was a traveller accent, probably sounded terrible to a traveller. I wouldnt consider travellers to have Irish accents.

I thought yer man in Braveheart who played the mad Irishman Stephen did a good Irish accent. "He wasnt right, in the head".

Yes,never knew that actor is Scottish.He also played an IRA man in Some Mothers Son,which brings us on to Helen Mirren in that film.

MrWalsh

darkdubh wrote: »

Yes,never knew that actor is Scottish.He also played an IRA man in Some Mothers Son,which brings us on to Helen Mirren in that film.

Sorry I should have said he was Scottish in my post.

Id forgotten he was in Some Mothers Son - only watched that recently. Agree, Helen Mirren had a very natural accent in it.

It feels like Snatch was Brad Pitt's way for him to apologize and make up for his terrible attempt at an accent in Devil's Own. While inconsistent, his traveller accent was spot on.

MrWalsh

Deleted User wrote: »

While inconsistent, his traveller accent was spot on.

Id like to hear what a traveller thought of it.

Larbre34

MrWalsh wrote: »

Id like to hear what a traveller thought of it.

'Twas spot on Boss.

Didn't he spend some time on a halting site learning from them?

Larbre34

Hrududu wrote: »

I'll never forget seeing the trailer for Evelyn in the cinema and breaking myself laughing at Pierce Brosnans accent. "Where's me dhhhhaughthhher?"

MrWalsh

Deleted User wrote: »

Didn't he spend some time on a halting site learning from them?

Dunno, but it sounded quite different to say, Patrick from Love/Hate who is actually a traveller.

I also dont know if there is a difference between the accent of a traveller who lives in Ireland and one who lives in England.

galljga1

Anybody in Darby O' Gill.

poeticmakaveli

Arnold Schwarzenegger in the terminator!!

poeticmakaveli

There was an episode in columbo called "the conspirators" where the main culprit is Irish and has committed a murder trying to do a deal with a man so he can smuggle guns back to Ireland to help with the IRA!I thought he was pretty good! I think he was English!

Arne_Saknussem

Agree with whoever said Brad Pitt's performance in Snatch was fun but his accent was all over the place and in no way convincing.

He obviously tried hard though.

Day-Lewis in In the Name of the Father was pretty good.

NachoBusiness

Will Poulter (fairly posh UK accent) is exceptional at an American accent, obviously, but I felt he was also very good at a thick Dublin one in Glassland.

The person I was with when I seen it actually thought that he was an Irish actor.

Can only find one line of it really, but it comes at the very end of this clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1d-IEi5C6Bg

xalot

James McEvoy in Inside I'm Dancing is a good Dublin accent.

quickbeam

James McAvoy in Inside I'm Dancing as already mentioned, but also Romola Garai in the same movie was also excellent.

McAvoy's missus, Anne-Marie Duff in The Magdelene Sisters was excellent too.

Paddy Consindine in In America already mentioned, but Samantha Morton, his wife in the film was also good.

Kelly Macdonald (notoriously for her awful accent in Boardwalk Empire) did a great accent in Intermission.

Eugene Norman

NachoBusiness wrote: »

Will Poulter (fairly posh UK accent) is exceptional at an American accent, obviously, but I felt he was also very good at a thick Dublin one in Glassland.

The person I was with when I seen it actually thought that he was an Irish actor.

Can only find one line of it really, but it comes at the very end of this clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1d-IEi5C6Bg

That's excellent. I was waiting for a posh English guy to appear at the end and do a good Irish accent but it was the guy at the counter. The reason I thought he was Dublin before he spoke is because of his mannerisms and body language/deportment.

The trend seems to be if they try to do an actual regional accent, it works.

lawred2

Into The Blue wrote: »

Daniel day Lewis, my left foot
Brad Pitt, snatch

Brad Pitt was a pikey... I'm not sure that there was any mention of nationality

Not that I can remember anyway

jones

lawred2 wrote: »

Brad Pitt was a pikey... I'm not sure that there was any mention of nationality

Not that I can remember anyway

"Not quite Irish, not quite English" is how the film portrays it i believe