BBC Sherlock Fan Forum - Serving Sherlockians since February 2012 » Black Mass

maryagrawatson · May 24, 2014 1:31 pm

I am torn between "Yay, more Benedict!!!!" and "More Benedict demonstrating that he can't do an American accent if his life depended on it"... (Have you seen him in "The Whistleblower"? ) and "Why is Benedict doing this instead of Sherlock series 4???!!!")

The movie itself sounds pretty interesting. Not a huge Johnny Depp fan, but the subject material sounds interesting.

Mary

Le Bear Polar · May 24, 2014 3:08 pm

Thanks for the video KP. Having Ben involved in this has gotten me curious about this story. It's an interesting choice for Ben, broadens his repertoire yet again. The film is already underway which means he's got to slip into William Bulger's boots pretty quick if the decision of his involvement was only recently made.

Mary - Was his American accent all that terrible? XD I listen to his audioworks doing an American accent and I find it alright.

SusiGo · May 24, 2014 3:11 pm

Yes, I would like to know that as well because I cannot judge his American accents. What about 12 Years and August Osage County?

Le Bear Polar · May 24, 2014 3:16 pm

This compilation contains more than a few American accents Ben does, and it sounds decently done.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixaxZcB-4MA

Tinks · May 24, 2014 3:30 pm

Mary, I'm assuming you're American?
I always thought his American accents were quite well done, even paying attention to region and period?
Oh, I hope he does this OK!!

besleybean · May 24, 2014 3:49 pm

He's always sounded convincing to me, but then I don't have the advantage of being American.

maryagrawatson · May 24, 2014 6:02 pm

Tinks wrote:
Mary, I'm assuming you're American?

Canadian.

The Whistleblower accent was BAD. It was supposed to ba flat, average North American accent like what I have. I kept getting annoyed when the Kaufmann character showed up because his voice set my teeth on edge. (I wasn't a Benedict fan yet and didn't know till the credits rolled that it was him.)

August: Osage County was passable, definitely a big improvement. I haven't spent enough time in Oklahoma to know if it was a good Oklahoma accent or not, but I've heard that's it's bad to middling. There were some moments where he lost the accent, so minus points for that.

I'm not sure what he was doing in 12 Years a Slave, something like a cross between a British accent and a stereotypical Southern accent. I've spent more time in Louisiana than I have Oklahoma and whatever he was doing was not the local accent, but considering the time difference, I'm not sure that what he did was bad or wrong. I'm not really counting this one in my opinion because Louisiana at the time was such a mix of British and French and Southerners and Spaniards that it's impossible to know what someone like Ford would have sounded like.

From what I've read about Black Mass, he's going to have to do a Boston accent, which is apparently notoriously difficult. Based on how he's handled other two other specific contemporary accents, I expect to grit my teeth.

(For Brits who really nail the average North American accent, look at Hugh Laurie, Damian Lewis, and David Harewood.)

Mary

Tinks · May 24, 2014 6:51 pm

Ah, OK.
I must say, I honestly don't get hung up on accents, as long as the performance itself is good, but given that he's seemingly only got a short time to learn this one, I hope he does OK with it - would hate to see him getting the kind of criticism poor David Tennant is getting at the moment :-/

Le Bear Polar · May 25, 2014 2:45 am

I've been listening to Boston accents on YouTube and it does sound wickedly difficult to replicate and be consistent at! I'm sure Ben would have an accent coach to get it right.

For those, like me, who are unfamiliar with the accent: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVVX4fQzhDc Sounds like Carmine Falcone's accent in Batman Begins. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7196gTmPOck

tonnaree · May 25, 2014 4:21 am

Watching The Whistleblower I was never distracted by Ben's accent. Didn't even pay it that much attention except at the begining. Just thought, oh hey, he's American in this.

And I'm American.

besleybean · May 25, 2014 7:26 am

At the beginning?
He was in it for all of 2 seconds!

SolarSystem · May 25, 2014 8:39 am

I would assume that if he screwed up all those American accents he had to do in the past completely, nobody would have cast him for this. The question is, why do they cast a British actor when there are lots of American actors around who certainly could have played this role as well? I guess he had to do the required accent in the casting process - or maybe the director deems other aspects to be far more important than the accent.

Le Bear Polar · May 25, 2014 8:54 am

Well said, Solar.

Davina · May 25, 2014 9:29 am

In 12 Years the accent they chose to give Ford was an educated southern accent of the period. This is in direct and deliberate contrast to Epps' accent which was uneducated southern accent of the period.

SusiGo · May 27, 2014 2:34 pm

Hear an update - filming will be starting soon. Keep your eyes open, KP!

For the record - there is a mistake in the article. The female characters mentioned are Whitey Bulger's wife and girl friend, not Billy's.

http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2014-05-27/johnny-depp-and-benedict-cumberbatch-to-begin-shooting-black-mass-in-boston

This Is The Phantom Lady · May 27, 2014 2:46 pm

Oooh I'm all excited now!! I am really hoping for a picture or something...

SolarSystem · May 27, 2014 2:47 pm

Hm, I could imagine that Benedict will only join them after he did Letters Live... otherwise he'd have a lot of flying to do...?

SusiGo · May 27, 2014 2:50 pm

Yes, I think so. They can start shooting the scenes for which they do not need him (not too many, I hope)

KeepersPrice · May 27, 2014 4:59 pm

So, I'm thinking I'll try to leave work early each day and head over to the North End - which is luckily near my train station - so maybe, just maybe, I could catch a glimpse.

*Running to the ladies room right now to apply lipstick in the hopes that it will "work for me"*

nakahara · May 27, 2014 5:18 pm

KeepersPrice wrote:
So, I'm thinking I'll try to leave work early each day and head over to the North End - which is luckily near my train station - so maybe, just maybe, I could catch a glimpse.

*Running to the ladies room right now to apply lipstick in the hopes that it will "work for me"*

Oh, you are naughty!
But good luck!