Five Favorite Game of Thrones Characters

Game of Thrones is one of my favourite shows on television today, it is thrilling, visually stunning, fantastically plotted and features one of the best ensemble casts working today. The show revolves around the fictional kingdom of Westeros, a land ruled over by seven families, all of whom fight over the iron throne, seen to be the capital of Westeros and the seven kingdoms, and the seat of power. The show is a dark family drama, which incorporates elements of fantasy, and features diverse characters of vastly different origins and ethnicities. For the sake of this list given his inclusion in the last favourite five, Tyrion Lannister, though fantastic, will not be included here to avoid repetition.

• Danaerys Targaryen

Danaerys is also fascinating, she is one of the most powerful female characters of the cast, not being married or betrothed, and commanding an army of thousands. Khaleesi has mystical powers, and is known as the mother of dragons, Targaryen is aware and in command of her power, she sses herself as the equal of any man, and she doesn't use her sexuality to gain power. Targaryen is coolly elegant, powerful and wise. Plus she has dragons, which is pretty cool.

• Margaery Tyrell

Margaery is a fascinating character, marrying into the powerful yet dangerous house of lannister. Margeary is openly hostile toward Cersei, who currently has power as Queen Regent, and as Joffreys betrothed, she subtly manages to gain control over him. Margaery is fascinating because on the surface she appears to be pleasant, she is kind to Sansa, though this seems to be to extract information from her, and her relationship with her grandmother seems genuine, however Margaery is also one of the most manipulative characters. She uses her beauty and sexuality to woo Joffrey and to gain power over him, and thus she hope one day to sit on the iron throne, if not physically, then is spirit.

• Cersei Lannister

Cersei is the Queen Regent of Kings Landing, a supremely elegant woman, Cersei maintains a complex and strange relationship with her twin brother, from whom she is inseparable, and with whom she has a son, Joffrey, who sits on the Iron Throne. Cersei is a cruel and manipulative woman, using her power and influence to control Joffrey, she becomes enraged when she sees Margery taking over control of her son, and she attempts to smear Margery, and her brother Tyrion. Cersei is one of the most fearsome of the characters of Game of Throne, and yet her motives are clear, Cersei is a clear oligarch, a woman who loves power and lusts for influence.

• Renly Baratheon

I have a soft spot for Renly, despite him only appearing in the first season of the show, Renly is the youngest of the Baratheon brothers, and the lover of Ser Loras Tyrell, brother of Margery. Their relationship is shown openly in the show unlike in the books. Renly is subsequently married to Margery, who is aware of her husbands sexuality and relationship with her brother. Renly is subsequently killed by his brother, in his attempt to overthrow the king. Renly is a complex and often tragic character, and his closeted relationship with Loras mirrors much of the shame that plagues our society.

• Tywin Lannister

Tywin Lannister is the patriarch of the house of lannister, father of three children, and true heir to the iron throne, Tywin is a formidable figure, he resents his son Tyrion, for causing the death of his mother, his wife and for his size, regarding him as deformed and runtish. Tyrion seems to love his other children, though his love for power is often stronger, and he is unafraid to cross them in his search for influence, in short, Tywin is a true lannister, fearsome and formidable.

Five Favourite Monarchic Portrayals

• Tyrion Lannister played by Peter Dinklage

Tyrion Lannister, while not a monarch himself, is the hand of the king for much of the series, and belongs to a royal family, the House of Lannister, his nephew Joffrey, rules over Kings Landing and sits on the iron throne. Dinklage's portrayal is fascinating, given his size he is limited from using force, and so he has to fight battles with his tongue and not his sword. Tyrion is quick witted and sharp, and Dinklage gives him a sense of humanity that is missing from the rest of the House of Lannister. Tyrion Lannister is a fascinatingly complex character, and his portrayal by Dinklage is one of the best performances currently on television.

• George, The Prince Regent played by Hugh Laurie

  Unlike the other performances on this list, this portrayal is atypically comedic, Lauries portrayal of The Prince Regent portrays him as a buffoon with little respect for the troubles of his subjects. George is seen as a fool, who spends far to much time and money of frivolities like socks and clothes, expressing an attitude that one can never have enough socks, his seem to go missing like teaspoons. Lauries George is a fantastic creation, a bumbling idiot who thinks the dictionary is a terrible idea, and who seems to be astonishingly incompetent, being unable to even put on his trousers by himself, (he eventually winds up putting them on his head).

• Queen Elizabeth II played by Helen Mirren

Mirrens performance as our current queen is one of the greatest of all time, she portrays the queen at one of the most difficult points of her reign, after the death of Princess Diana, when she was being incredibly criticized for her actions. Mirren portrays the queen as an incredibly complex and conflicted person, a woman who wants to do the best for her country and her people, while at the same time struggling to reconcile her feelings for a woman she loathed, and yet who was beloved by her subjects. Mirren allows us to be a fly on the wall, and her portrayal is starkly lifelike, and spellbinding.

• Jadis, The White Witch played by Tilda Swindon

  Jadis, while not explicitly stated to be a queen, wears a crown of icicles, and appears to have almost total control over the peoples of Narnia. Jadis wears a robe of icy blue burnt wool, and stands incredibly tall, she seems to be half giant. Swindon paints Jadis to be the picture of evil, and sees no need to give her any humanity. The White Witch is a woman we can really hate, a woman motivated by greed, anger and irascibility. Jadis is a loathsome character, terrifyingly beautiful and rotten to the core, she is the greatest antagonist one could wish for, and Swindon's portrayal of her is terrifying and delightful in the same breath. Swindon portrays a villain we all love to hate.

• Queen Elizabeth I played by Cate Blanchett

 Blanchett deserved to win an Oscar for her portrayals, her performances as the virgin queen are visceral and real, she has the advantage of portraying the queen over many years of her reign, playing her in two movies, and so we see the emotional and intellectual growth from a young girl pushed into power to a woman sitting strong on the throne. Blanchett transforms into a formidable queen who, while fair and just, is not to be crossed, and will treat anybody who opposes her with swift justice. We also see Elizabeth take a stand as a warrior helping britain to defeat the spanish armada, rallying the troops, and Blanchetts performance is stirring and moving. In Elizabeth and its sequel, Blanchett is, as always, stellar.

Musings on...Lena Dunham

Lena Dunham is an actress, writer, producer and director who since 2012 has directed, produced, written and starred in her own show on HBO. I hate her. All jokes aside Dunham is a supremely talented woma, her show, Girls is a comedy about four young women living in new york city, struggling to deal with the realities of supporting oneself and maintaining a meaningful relationship. Dunham plays Hannah Horvath, a young writer living with her friend in a Brooklyn apartment, working on her debut novel having been cut off by her parents.

Dunham is fantastic as an actress, her portrayal of Hannah is tender, unique and sutle, she portrays Hannah as a genuinely flawed character, a woman who is self centered and selfish. Despite her flaws Dunham gives us something to love, something to latch on to, we empathize with Hannah and we are able to see ourselves in her, despite her flaws. In addition to being a fantastic actress, Dunham also writes the show. The show features a great selection of characters, each finely crafted and well defined, and the best episodes are the ones written by Dunham herself, as she really has a good feel for these characters and the directions they should be taken in.

In addition to her work on Girls, Dunham has also authored a book which is due to be released in September, and has directed a film, previous to the television series. Tiny Furniture was Dunham's first mainstream film, a comedy drama about a girl returning from art school, and dealing with finding a direction and defining herself. The film is well made, and acts as a blueprint for Girls, with Dunhams character being similar to Hannah, and the film also starring Jemima Kirke and Alex Karpovsky, which would later both be featured on Girls. Despite not having a huge number of credits to her name, Lena Dunhams work on these projects is impressive, and Dunham is well on the way to becoming the voice of our generation, or, at least, a voice.

Five Favourite Kate Winslet Performances

Kate Winslet is one of my favourite actresses, in fact, tied with Meryl Streep she may be my favourite actress, she has been in a wide range of roles, nominated for six oscars with one win, winning two golden globes in the same year, and with such a wide range of characters portrayed, it would almost be a crime not to compile this list.

• Clementine Kruczynski in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

This may be Winslet's most gonzo performance yet, her scene stealing performance as the quirky and unbalanced Clementine is at times breathtaking, far removed from the period housewives and corset queens she in known for playing, the dyed hair and neurosis. Winslet plays Clementine with a vulnerability and a pathos that is commendable.

• Juliet Hulme in Heavenly Creatures

Winslet's screen debut, directed by Peter Jackson and based on a true story, Winslet plays Juliet Hulme, a fourteen year old english schoolgirl living in New Zealand who makes a plan with her best friend to murder her friends mother. The relationship between the two girls is platonic, though bordering on obsessive, and Hulme comes off as being controlled, poised and manipulative. Winslet shows herself as being a natural in front of the camera, and her performance in the film is surprisinly elegant for an actress so young.

• Mildred Pierce in Mildred Pierce

Winslet's performance in this piece is fascinating simply because there is so much of it. A six hour miniseries, Mildred Pierce is the story of a woman living in the depression, divorcing her husband and struggling to feed her family. Mildred Pierce spans multiple decades and multiple husbands, and we are really able to see the emotional maturing of a woman finding her independence and her feet, and making something of herself in the world. Mildred is a woman who adores her daughter to a fault, and who will do anything for her, even to the point of losing everything. Joan Crawford truly would have loathed her.

• Hanna Schmitz in The Reader

Winslet won an Oscar for her portrayal of Hanna Schmitz, a former Nazi SS agent on trial for her involvement in the deaths of many prisoners during the second world war, earlier, before the war, Hanna started an affair with a fifteen year old boy, and as he watches her trial, he realizes certain truths about her. Winslet's portrayal is perfect, her german accent is on point, and she comes off as a woman hiding a terrible secret, more important than her involvement in the deaths of concentration camp prisoners.

• Iris Murdoch in Iris

Here Winslet plays the 20th century philosopher and novelist Iris Murdoch. Winslet plays the character in flashback, the younger version of Judi Dench. Her role in the film is small, and despite being overshadowed by Judi Dench, she manages nonetheless to imbude the role with an ingenuity and a charm that is lost in the older Iris. Winslet's Iris has a free artist's spirit, and a sexual promiscuity that is refreshing, and she portrays the character as a little naive, but with a huge personality.

Five Favorite Meryl Streep Performances

I am a little obsessed, i've been a fan of this woman for many years, and after 18 Oscar Nominations and 60 roles, it is time to rank my favorite Meryl Streep performances. It is only possible to do this with a few actors, and Streep is one of these. Most actors have too sparse a filmography for this to be possible, but Streep has incarnated so many iconic characters that it would be a travesty not to compile this list.

• Sister Beauvier: Doubt

Doubt is one of Meryl Streep's best movies, she plays Sister Aloysius Beauvier, the head of a nunnery and school, who is struggling to juggle her commitment to god and to justice, with her commitment to her leader, a priest who she suspects may be a pedophile.This is a role which requires tremendous gravitas, and Streep gives the part huge weight, playing the sister as intimidating and dour. Sister Beauvier is a hugely conflicted character, she struggles with her responsibilities and the doubt she has as to whether the priest truly is a pedophile, conveying this struggle with huge success.

• Jill: Manhattan

One of Streep's early roles, here she plays Woody Allen's lesbian ex-wife, an independent woman with whom Allen shares a child. Although this is a small character, and Streep was relatively unexperienced at the time, she infuses the role with the perfect amount of cool, and the character is relatively unfazed by Allen's neuroses. Again Streep shows us her extraordinary gift with accents, and the character has a light new york accent, that is subtle and blended, without being cartoonish.

• Miranda Priestly: Devil Wears Prada

I have oft spoken of my love for this movie, Streep plays Miranda Priestly, a fiercely professional and demanding magazine editor, this film is essentially a roman a clef about Anna Wintour, the current editor in chief of american Vogue, however rather than playing Priestly as a caricature or parody of the much feared Vogue editor, Streep instead crafts an entirely new character, taking choice components from Wintour, such as her unchanging hairstyle and her poised accent, and crafting a new person with them.

• Clarissa Vaughan: The Hours

I love this movie, and all three women are fantastic in this film. Streep plays a woman struggling to cope with the impending death of her best friend from AIDS. Already grieving for the loss of her friend, Vaughan attempts to understand the reasons for his death, whilst planning a party with her partner, Sally. The film analyzes the effect that the novel Mrs Dalloway has on her life, and Clarissa's life mirrors Mrs Dalloway's in many ways. Streep's performance is pensive, subtle, and, a word i'm sure we will hear a lot of in this post, poised.

• Julia Child: Julie & Julia

It is no secret that Streep is a master with accents, but Julia Child's accent is iconic, and the late TV personality and author was a much beloved figure. Streep walks a fine line between parody and imitation, finding a balance between making her performance to one note, and becoming a saturday night live skit. Streep's performance is loving and admiratory, and her command of Child's accent is hugely impressive.

Feminism: The Discussion

The fact that this is an article that even needs to be written saddens me greatly, but it must. Last weekend, two action films were released, the R rater Lucy featuring the definitely female Scarlett Johansson and the PG-13 rated Hercules, starring the definitely male Dwayne Johnson. These are two fairly similar movies, not thematically but in terms of marketing and quality. Both films were marketed on the strengths of their stars, and both have similar metascores. Dwayne Johnson is an undeniably charismatic actor, this year i proclaimed him to be the only true action hero left, and he was the highest grossing actor of 2013. What was surprising to industry insiders was that Lucy won, it grossed more than Hercules despite having a female lead and being rated R.

For years filmmakers have been reticent about making high budget films with female leads. Despite the fact that women make up 52% of the population and, like men, do go and see films, and despite the fact that men also like going to see films with female leads. The figures speak for themselves, Lucy made $44 million at the box office, and was evenly split between men and women. 2013 was also a remarkable year for women in film. For the first time since 1973, the highest grossing film at the US domestic box-office had a lead female character, the film was Catching Fire, starring Jennifer Lawrence. The highest grossing film worldwide was Frozen, an animated adaptation of The Snow Queen featuring not one but two leading female characters, and finally of the films nominated for the best picture Oscar, the highest grossing nominee was Gravity, which was not only a film with a lead female character, but a film with only a female character, in addition, the highest grossing comedy of the year was The Heat, a film, again, featuring two female leads. It seems that people don't mind seeing films starring women, who knew?

Studio executives are notorious cowards, we live in a world where there are plenty of fantastic films, but where most of them are low budget independent films, for instance of the Best Picture nominees, only gravity was a studio financed film, the others were independent's, only distributed by major studio's. The problem is that studio's will only release a film if it can be turned into a franchise, or merchandised, thus many high budget action films featuring women simply never see the light of day. The problem is that studio's, which do so much research and polling, fail to understand and struggle with change. Hollywood is a world, where when something works we just keep doing the same thing, the problem is that films with male leads make money, and so there is no impetus for studios to place women above the marquee.

The biggest problem with the film industry is that it doesn't show any sign of changing, the world is round, women make up half of the western worlds population, and like men, women also like to go and see movies. It is time for studios to wake up and realize that female driven films can be successful, that women are just as funny as men, and that men are not repulsed by the idea of going to see a film with a female lead. Films with women at the helm are some of the most successful films released today, and studio executives must start to realize that.

The Death of the Action Hero

The modern age of cinema really only has one real action hero. Gone are the eighties or nineties where seeing a name like Arnold Schwarzenegger or Bruce Willis was enough to make a movie, and where box office returns could be guaranteed, simply due to the presence of a star. Those days have passed, and it is perhaps a good thing that they have, movie franchises are no longer based around a central charismatic figure, that would be too risky, instead they are based around brand; the Transformers franchise is a good example of this, the first three movies featured Shia LeBoeuf in a central role, but when he announced his reluctance to appear in another film, rather than simply give up on the franchise, in was continued with a different actor, Mark Wahlberg. We live in a world in which Hollywood action heroes are entirely disposable, no-one is irreplaceable, and no actor is instrumental to the success or failure of a movie, the names of actors are relegated to the small print of movie posters, to leave space for the logos and giant robots.

The only action hero left is Dwayne Johnson, he recently referred to himself as franchise steroids, and he was the highest grossing actor of 2013. He successfully revitalized GI Joe, the Fast and the Furious Franchise, and the Journey series. Johnson has, not only the brawn, but also the charisma and charm of action heroes of yore, and his box office draw is unparalleled. The only other possible candidate is Jennifer Lawrence, who really carries the entire Hunger Games franchise on her shoulders, and who is the franchise's greatest asset. Will Smith used to be one of the biggest action heroes of all time, and was consistently one of the industries biggest draws, however in 2013 we were delivered After Earth, a film with not one but two Smith's, and in short the film flopped both commercially and critically. A name is simply not enough to guarantee box office success anymore, and Fox, unwilling to pay Will Smith a ridiculous amount for his participation in Independence Day 2, has replaced him with another actor.

Action heroes are not what they used to, even those that still do matter don't have the charisma or charm that Schwarzenegger or Willis have, all one needs to become an action hero is a decent set of abs. Take the 300 franchise, Gerard Butler refused to return for the sequel, and he was replaced, in an industry beyond the Hollywood studio system, where stars are no longer signed to studios, studios are keen to sign actors up for multiple picture deals, and if they refuse, they're replaced. Movies have changed, and actors are too volatile to hold up a franchise on their own, so studios prefer to base their films around CGI robots and monsters, creating brands rather than characters.