dialects in movies

[Gregory McNamee]

Ula,

You'll find plenty of regional stereotyping via dialect and accent in
films today, as well as in the past. I think of <O Brother, Where Art
Thou> as a prime example of accent meant to convey various levels of
stupidity/gullibility. Farther back, <Chinatown> is another film in
which the heavy has a decided brogue as opposed to the near-flat
affect of the other English-speaking characters. <Devil in a Blue
Dress> contrasts regional and urban African American dialects, and <Up
in Smoke> plays with Chicano English. Puerto Rican English meets New
Yorkese in <West Side Story>, and accents are fitted to characters
closely in <From Here to Eternity>.

When I think of dialect/accent films, I think immediately of
<Casablanca>, a wonderful orchestra of European and American accents.

I'm not sure how any of these will fit your thesis, but they're all
very well worth watching. Good luck!

Greg

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