The South African accent isn’t an easy one to mimic. Heck, even in South Africa, there are different nuances as a Fourways boet sounds different from a Benoni boy. So, it’s always amusing to see how big-budget productions handle our taal in a film. Many laughs were had at the expense of Leonardo DiCaprio’s attempts in Blood Diamond, for example, and we’ve seen more than a few questionable ones since then. However, the movie Escape from Pretoria might claim the title of the worst attempts at South African accents ever.
The Story
The Francis Annan-directed thriller tells the real-life story of a prison escape by three political prisoners in 1979. The film stars Daniel Radcliffe, Daniel Webber and Ian Hart as the three leads. It was filmed in Australia and the UK, and is largely devoid of any South African actors in main roles.
When the trailer first dropped, it sent many South Africans into fits of giggles.
Awful South African Accents
There’s no simple way to say it: The accents are atrocious. At some point, you hear a bit of Irish, then some French, and a whole lot of Australian. Unfortunately, it doesn’t feel authentic at all.
Perhaps Escape from Pretoria is a good film—despite the shoddy accents—because it’s certainly an important, interesting, real-life story to retell.
Watch the trailer below and let us know what you think about the South African accents in Escape from Pretoria.
I am an English-speaking South African. Daniel Radcliffe nailed the SA English accent where there is little underlying Afrikaans influence. Everyone else was atrocious. Watched the whole.movie. Just didn’t seem authentic. It should have been filmed in South Africa with South African actors!
The accents undermine the story being told. It would be better if they did not attempt the SA accent at all and just used their Aussie accents
I am English South African and I have to disagree with you regarding Blood Diamond ! Leonardo DiCaprio had a perfect English South African accent which is a hard accent to do as it is more subtle than an Afrikaans South African accent. His mannerisms also spot on . So I don’t why you would print something that is so wrong on all accounts.
I enjoyed the movie for the story it told not to critique their accents … I could care less about that
it was a good movie and it told a great story… so yuk yuk laugh your socks off aren’t you just too cool!
I didn’t let the terrible SA accents spoil the film Edge of the seat stuff for me
Just started watching and was wondering what others thought of the accents – I am laughing my socks off, so it is difficult to take the film seriously.
Agreed I’m about to turn off the movie Escape from Pretoria because it is so atrocious
Are there no South Africans actors or not who could have been cast?
It is too distracting to watch and especially to listen to.
I am appalled