Here in Utah we have a religious group of some fame. One of the thing that nearly all males do at age 19 is leave home for two years on a mission. Most go from no foreign language at all to conversationally fluent in a few months. But then, some go to other parts of the US. I actually liked the way they did the language in
13th Warrior. It showed that he was picking it up bit by bit. What I didn't like is the casting of Antonio Banderas. The bald guy and the guy with the beard from The Mummy could more easily pass for Arab. (
Arnold Vosloo and
Oded Fehr) Sure they are from South Africa and Israel, but putting Banderas in that role just seemed too much like a throwback to the white actors playing Native Americans in the older films. Also, I can't understand half of what he says. Like the guys from Oasis, he needs subtitles all the time. That might just be me though.
