My Top 5 Television Characters From The Last 10 Years (Drama Series)

This is my take on the top five most interesting, moving characters in a drama television series in the last 10 years. This is all my opinion so feel free to let me know your opinions!

First I need to give honorable mentions for shows I haven't watched but I'm sure they are really good and a few who are amazing but didn't make my list

Dexter Morgan from Dexter
Tony Soprano from The Sopranos
Omar Little from The Wire
Benjamin Linus from Lost
Clay Morrow from Sons Of Anarchy

5. Jack Bauer from 24

The highly crafty, highly-trained counter terrorist agent Jack Bauer sparked audiences all over the world in the action packed show 24. Continuously dealing with heart-breaking choices and family crisis', Jack always has to maintain his composure and save the world in a span of 24 hours. The show kind of lost its luster after the third season in my opinion but it doesn't prevent me from saying Jack Bauer is one of the most interesting characters of all-time.

4. John Locke from Lost

The multi-layered shell of a man, John Locke is a character who symbolizes the good in people. But like all of us, he struggles to keep his faith with terrible things continue to happen to him. He has his foot in the light and dark events that circle his life but he is looked upon as the source of faith among his peers. Lost still is my favorite shows of all-time and John Locke is one of those characters who are important to me.

3. Gregory House from House, M.D.

The Sherlock Holmes of the 21st century, Gregory House is the genius diagnostician who solves medical mysteries with his team. Probably the most complexed characters in recent history, House struggles with social interaction and understanding. He his a wizard among numbers, logic and reasoning, yet, he struggles to keep his relationships together. He has no muscle in his right leg, which causes him to take Vicodin, but with his social problems he begins to be an addict. House has always kept me entertained with his witty remarks, intelligent theories and Hugh Laurie's acting is beyond perfect. House is definitely one of my favorite characters.

2. Gemma Teller from Sons Of Anarchy

The matriarch of a motorcycle club, Gemma Teller is a mother who struggles to keep her family together. Embodied with dark secrets, Gemma is a constant mystery to the viewer. Her intentions are always for the sake of her family, but her methods can be violent, deceptive and just plain cruel. She is one of those characters you can hate one day and love the next. That sort of character, in my opinion, is one of the most interesting characters a person can create. Gemma's maternal instincts are portrayed in a dark way and Katey Sagal's Emmy winning portrayal has left me in complete awe.

1. Detective Vic Mackey from The Shield

The Shield, along with HBO's The Wire, is the first detective TV series to show the gritty side of cops in history. Detective Vic Mackey is a ruthless, effective detective who will do anything to solve a crime. Anything. Vic will get the job done but his methods are dark and sinister. He becomes engulfed with greed and steals money from his findings. His morals and greed conflict throughout the series and the viewer sees the deconstruction of a man who loses his sense of control. His continued attempt to plant evidence, covering his tracks and lying to his family eventually catch up to him and Michael Chiklis' Emmy winning performance illustrates this deconstruction beautifully. It was an amazing show and Vic Mackey will forever be one of my favorite characters of all-time.

Those are my top five. Let me know what you think! Follow my blog and comment!

Inspiration

There are many movies that inspire people. Stories that show triumph, confidence and bold strengths against all odds. Movies can be an outlet for many people. They take people's minds off strenuous situations, makes people laugh when they're down, and show people that there's always a way out of problems. Since I can remember, watching movies have been something I can do to help me get through tough times. These three movies I must have watched 700 times each, helping me understand there's more in life than just hardships.

Miracle- Dir. Gavin O'Connor. Starring Kurt Russell. (2004)

Yes, I am Canadian. Yes, I'm obsessed with hockey. But this is one of the most inspirational movies of all-time. Based on a true story, this movie illustrates one of the proudest moments in American history. The United States, packed with eight-teen year old kids, against the veteran Soviet Union. 1980. The game during which the country of the Soviets kidnapped American citizens and televised it for us to watch. We felt hopeless, yet these kids did something that nothing seemed to be able to do. They made us proud to be Americans. Amazing movie, highly recommend it to all everyone!

The Pursuit Of Happyness- Dir. Gabriele Muccino. Starring Will Smith. (2006)

This movie bleeds inspiration from start to finish. The ultimate goal for everyone is to survive in this world. Will Smith playing Chris Gardner, loving father who's struggling to find ends meet financial must balance taking a stock-brokering class and taking care of his son, ironically played by his actual son Jaden Christopher Syre Smith. The movie has numerous heart-breaking scenes which makes you pull for Chris the entire time. Will Smith's most gripping performance leaves the viewer in complete awe. A must see.

The Shawshank Redemption- Dir. Frank Darabont. Starring Tim Robbins & Morgan Freeman. (1994)

"Get busy living or get busy dying." This quote from the movie says it all. The fight for freedom. Perfect cast. Perfect characters. We laugh, we cry, we scream and every emotion surges through these characters we relate to so well. We all want to escape the prison we close within ourselves and everyone can relate from this movie. Just an unforgettable movie with an unforgettable cast and this movie should be in the top three in most inspirational movies.

Please comment your top 3! Let me know what you think of mine and feel free to poll my question I will be updating once every couple days! Thanks guys!

Top Five Performances Of All-Time

Acting is one of the most key elements of a successful movie. Picking the greatest performances of all-time is a very difficult task because it is opinionated and there are numerous performances to choose from. These are my picks for greatest performances by an actor.

5) Edward Norton in Tony Kaye's American History X

Edward Norton gives an Oscar-nominated performance as Derek Vinyard, a neo-Nazi whose time in prison changes his prejudice views and tries to prevent his little brother, played by Edward Furlong, from going down the same path he did. This gritty, powerful performance showed the intensity Edward Norton can bring into a performance. His chilling dialogues (his most chilling showed to you above) exemplify one of the most daring roles any actor has ever taken. This is why I believe this is one of the greatest performances of all-time.

4) Leonardo DiCaprio in Scott Kalvert's The Basketball Diaries

I believe Leonardo DiCaprio is the most deserving for an Academy Award and I am extremely surprised he hasn't gotten on yet. With all his jaw-dropping performances, I believe his best performance was in his earlier movies in The Basketball Diaries. He plays Jim Carroll, a young poet and basketball star who becomes addicted to heroin. This "based-on-a-true-story" performance is one of DiCaprio's darkest performances. He was only 21 years of age when he starred in this film and he demonstrated his maturity at a very young age. I could have put his performance in What's Eating Gilbert Grape where he played a mentally challenged boy, but the scene above may be one of the most realistic scenes of withdrawal captured on film and I believe this is why it's one of the best performances of all-time.

3) Sean Penn in Jessie Nelson's I Am Sam

Sean Penn plays Sam Dawson, a mentally retarded man who is fighting custody for his daughter. This was one of the most emotionally driven performances I have ever scene. Sean Penn was absolutely amazing. He played the part perfectly, acting as someone who cannot function properly yet, he expressed his emotions in other ways, leaving this as one of the greatest performances of all-time.

2) Heath Ledger in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight

Some people feel that Heath Ledger won Best Supporting Actor because he passed away. Let me be clear. Heath Ledger won Best Supporting Actor because HE WAS the best supporting actor. His portrayal as the Joker was nothing short of a masterpiece. Showing a darker side to previous Jokers, for example Jack Nicholson's, I believe he portrayed the Joker as he was meant to be portrayed. I'll be honest, when I first heard he was going to play the Joker I was extremely disappointed. I thought there were so many other potential actors who would be amazing in this role, for example Johnny Depp. I was completely wrong. The Joker will never be played again because actors will not touch the role that Heath Ledger made into the perfect performance. Rest In Peace Heath Ledger and thank you.

1) Russell Crowe in Ron Howard's A Beautiful Mind

I know people. You guys must think I'm insane for putting this as number one. But I'm standing by it. Russell Crowe's performance as John Nash, a mathematician and suffering schizophrenic, is the best performance by an actor I have seen in my life. He had to know a plentiful amount of math, he had to age, he had to act as if he was hallucinating and he did it which such grace and authenticity. I've seen this movie numerous times and I can't get enough of it. It truly is a masterpiece and I believe this is the best performance of all-time.

Leave your comments! Let me know what you think!