Which Dumbledore?

mach1982

So which Dumbledore do you like Richard Harris version or Michael Gambom's. Personally I prefer the late Richard Harris as when I read the books he is the Dumberdore I see.

norrie rugger

Richard Harris by a mile.

He exudes the calm, authorative, power that the book has BUT this power lies below a kind, understanding and caring personality. Basically he is a person that you do NOT want to get angry.

Gambon: seems to play a more agressive and quick to anger Dumbledore. He expresses his power, rather than casting an aura of it. Just seems less likable

Love2love

Richard Harris without question.

I do like Gambon though but I think my opinion is bias as I love the books and films and I don't want to admit to not liking 1 aspect of them.

eVeNtInE

This post has been deleted.

Scarinae

Didn't Michael Gambon actually admit he had never read the books? He gets the character so, so wrong it is unbelievable

keefg

mach1982 wrote: »

Personally I prefer the late Richard Harris as when I read the books he is the Dumberdore I see.

Same for me.

Johnny Bitte

Ouch 10 - 0 to Harris. Yeah most definatly the best.

amacachi

Harris all the way. Gambon gets the character wrong but it's not really his fault, a bit of direction wouldn't go amiss.

hussey

Harris - just the voice in the first one does it for me

Scarinae

Funny thing is, when the first movie came out I remember thinking that they had miscast Richard Harris because he was so creaky and frail in a way I had never imagined Dumbledore to be, he looked as if he was about to drop dead. However, Michael Gambon acts as a very flattering foil - Richard Harris is absolutely brilliant in comparison to him

Toots

I preferred Harris as Dumbledore, but saying that I really didn't like the first two films. Didn't they change directors after the second one or something? If that's true about Gambon not even reading the books, that's a total disgrace :mad:

laurashambles

Toots85 wrote: »

If that's true about Gambon not even reading the books, that's a total disgrace :mad:

It's true.

Gambon says he has not yet read a single Harry Potter book, preferring to just read the scripts, noting "People who have read the books get miserable because of all the bits that have been cut out. So I just read the script."

http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/2005/11/15/em-empire-em-interviews-michael-gambon

Apparently, he also doesn't watch the movies or even show up at the premieres. =/

Cathmandooo

+1 to Gambon playing him too angrily but that has to be the directors influence also. Dumbledore doesn't lose his cool and in the books I love that about him, he takes everything in his stride, if he doesn't then something is very wrong whereas Gambon seems to be too pushy and shocked about things.

It was only really when reading the last few books that I warmed more to Harris though, he just played him so well, so flighty and yet so wise.

flazio

I'm going to step up and defend Gambon a bit here.
First and foremost I think the the most perfect portrayal of Dumbledore was that which was provided in Prisoner of Azkaban, Gambon's debut. While I agree that the 'Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire' scene in the aforementioned film and the 'Don't you all have study to do?' scene from Phoenix were totally wrong, I can't see Harris's DD giving Voldemort what's worth in the Ministry of Magic. I don't think Harris would even be able to do as much as Christopher Lee and/or Ian Mackellan did in the first Lord of The Rings.

dazf

'Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire'
I joke about this all the time, its just not the Dumbledore I grew to love...He looks like hes gona kill Harry in that scene

lostanddribling

Harris definitely, but i did really like gambon in POA, he kinda showed the witty and weird side of dumbledore but by jeeeeesus has he ****ed up a good bit since then

mach1982

Just saw this on Wikipedia.

wikipedia wrote:

Despite having deliberately mislead an interviewer (something Gambon enjoys doing often, to mix things up a bit), he HAS read the books, as evidenced in the Prisoner of Azkaban interviews. Similarly, he has also mislead another interviewer to believe that, when playing Dumbledore, he doesn't "have to play anyone really. I just stick on a beard and play me, so it's no great feat. I never ease into a role – every part I play is just a variant of my own personality. I’m not really a character actor at all..."

Patricide

Harris by a mile, Gambon gets the role sooo wrong and judging by the polls 29-1 result it seems that everyones in the same mind frame.

MetalDawg

Harris all the way, he just brought a quiet dignity and also a sense of vulnerability similar to his Marcus Aurelius in Gladiator.

Cul a cnoic

Richard Harris a mile above Gambon but Harris was not the first choice as Dumbledore. Patrick Mc Goohan of "The prisoner", "Dangerman" and "Braveheart" was the first choice and I would guess, better suited to the role that Harris. Mc Goohan also turned down the role of James Bond.

Another interesting fact about McGoohan is that he is of Leitrim decent and lived there for a few years as a child. His uncle was Phil Fitzpatrick who wrote "Lovely Leitrim". McGoohan also used the pen name Paddy Fitz


Have a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_McGoohan for more on him.

Ruu_Old

Richard Harris obviously, however, I am interested to see how Michael Gambon will do in the next film. There is a really powerful scene from the HBP where

Dumbledore is begging Harry to kill him when drinking the liquid from the cup

, sent shivers down my spine.

Handsome Bob

laurashambles wrote: »

It's true.



http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/2005/11/15/em-empire-em-interviews-michael-gambon

Apparently, he also doesn't watch the movies or even show up at the premieres. =/

Well that doesn't sound too bad, he's basically saying he doesn't want to piss himself off by reading a book, coming across a great Dumbledore scene but then only to find that the scene isn't in the movie script.

Anyway, I prefer Harris. But I also like the way Gambon plays Dumbledore and I actually enjoy the bits where he gets angry. We can't always be a picture of calmness all the time, it's nice to see some emotion. For example, the scene where Umbridge is kicking Sybil out of Hogwarts and Gambon bursts open the doors, I think he perfectly captures the injustice of what's happening.

norrie rugger

Ruu wrote: »

Richard Harris obviously, however, I am interested to see how Michael Gambon will do in the next film. There is a really powerful scene from the HBP where

Dumbledore is begging Harry to kill him when drinking the liquid from the cup

, sent shivers down my spine.

Did it live up to your expectations.
I think that it was done a bit too fast TBH

Lockstep

I'm going to have to back Gambon. I've never understood why so many people prefer Harris.

I wasn't impressed with Harris, he came across as frail and overly doddery in Philosopher's Stone. I just didn't see the authority and power Dumbledore possesses.

Gambon comes across as a man of action to me, every time you see him, he gives off this aura of unbridled and restrained power. Genuinely the better Dumbeldore to me.

allandanyways

Gambon, but ideally, I'd like to mix Gambon and Harris' Dumbledores together, and then I'd be really happy.

I thought Gambon was incredible in OOTP, especially at the Ministry, and throughout the film, I think he captured the worry and preoccupation that Dumbledore seemed to have.

I did NOT like him in the HBP though, I actually was really annoyed, especially with the

drinking scene, because we learn in the last book that he's seeing Ariana and he's in absolute agony over what he/Grindlewad did to her

. I think if Gambon had played that with much more emotion and agony then that scene would have played out better, thought he wasn't trying hard enough tbh, I cried when I read that scene in the book like... Don't even get me started on the you know what at the tower scene... :mad:

If we could combine Gambon's strength and powerful aura with Harris' gentleness and pensiveness and mystery that he exuded, especially in COS, then I'd be happy, as contradictory as it sounds, but then again Dumbledore is a complex man. I'd also be happy if neither of them did that stupid Irish lilt, drives me mad.