Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban question

Yeh .Me too.times seeing him I felt like being with a great person who has a better life experience indeed he was the greatest wizard of all time until those who remain don't forget him.

Richard Harris was what I pictured Dumbledore as when I read the books and he was such a great actor he could have pulled of the more intense parts easily. Michael Gambon came off as a mean and uncaring Dumbledore which ruined the character for me in the later movies.

i like grampy dumbledore. the old one is much better

richard harris all the way.

I think I would have prefered Richard Harris to have carried on playing Dumbledore - and not just because he had the twinkle in his eye!

Michael Gambon's quite often came across as uncharacteristically angry, rough and out of control some times. The bit that really annoyed me was when Harry's name was pulled from the pot - and he grabbed him and shook him.. since when did Dumbledore ever react like that - and then you get the scene where he quoted some ridiculous line when they were all sleeping in the hall which seemed silly and out of place. Was this the director though or the actors decision to play it out like that?

I always got the impression that the character was a bit "all knowing" and took everything calmly and carefully - and it wasnt until the fight scenes that you saw just how powerful and quick he could be. I'm sure Richard Harris could have pulled that off.

Richard Harris was by far the best. He had a kind of twinkly gravitas befitting a wizard. Although I like Gambon as an actor, I don't think he had the charisma for the role.

I don't think you can really compare them. They were different, but the Dumbledores in the books changed throughout the series. He went from kind old headmaster to fierce-greatest wizard of all time.

Richard Harris. :) When I read the books I imagine him there.

I liked the old Dumbledore better, but both are great. And Dumbledore is just awesome all around! :D

I can't believe this is even a discussion. Richard Harris 1,000,000 percent. As previously said, Michael Gambon did not even read the books. He knew nothing of who Dumbledore was. He even admitted that he never tries to make himself like the character he plays, but that he adapts the character to him. Which is kind of sad.

For further evidence, re-read the scene when Harry's name comes out of the Goblet of Fire. Go read it. Now! =]

Haha, ok...now that you have re-read that, pop in the GoF DVD and watch the scene. Polar opposite reactions between the Dumbledore of the book and Michael Gambon's portrayal.

And somebody said that Richard Harris lacked a humorous side, that just shows you missed a lot in the first two movies. He was quite amusing, the entire dialogue between he and Harry after the trip through the trapdoor had me grinning uncontrollably and also on the verge of tears. It was warm, it was fun, it was Dumbledore.

That being said, I still enjoyed the final six movies, but if you think that Richard Harris wouldn't have been able to do the job if he was alive and healthy, you are confused. Watch the remake of The Count of Monte Cristo, dude had some flare!

Unfortunately, I can't get over Michael Gambon's extremely OOC moments, especially in the Goblet of Fire. It was obvious that he had no concept of the character's personality. I read a quote in an interview where he said something like "I don't play the characters, I play different parts of myself."

Well sorry, but no one wants to see you. Please be an actor.

Ironically, if you watch off-screen footage of him, he acts more like Dumbledore in real life than he does in the movies! It's a shame because if he'd read the books or even tried to grasp the character, he might have chosen the correct part of himself to play.

Richard Harris was better, and he had that twinkly-eye thing going on. Soft-spoken, gentle, polite, but firm and forceful when needed.

I think Michael portrayed Dumbledore better. Richard Harris was just more..... Soft spoken and just gave me the sensitive shy impression. I could never imagine Richard doing things like the battle against voldemort in Order of the Phoenix or the cave scene in Half-Blood Prince. Michael is just so much more outgoing and mysterious and Dumbledore- like to me. I loved Richard too, but I think Michael portrayed Dumbledore better. Michael just seems more crazy and fun. Another thing that caught my attention was that the shy soft impression from Richard just didn't make me believe what J.K. Rowling said about Dumbledore being gay as much as Michael did. Thank you both Michael and Richard for making my childhood and helping my dreams to come true!!!!!!!

Richard Harris was the perfect Dumbledore. He was such a great actor and through his career proved that he could show gentleness and strength equally well. His speech at the end of the first movie was such a touching, memorable cinematic moment.

Richard Harris. Unfortunately, death played the trump card. If we had to replace him, I think Mr. Gambon did a fine job. It's very difficult to accept a change in a character so well-loved at Dumbledore. He had almost impossible shoes to fill, but he stuck with it and got the job done. I'm sure we all wish we still had Richard Harris around to provide more excellent acting. He is missed!

The first one was great but also the second was great aswell. Their both actors and they both played very great Dumbledore's!

Richard Harris hands down. I stopped watching the films after the forth one. Micheal Gambon destroyed Dumbledore for me. I think Ian McKellen would have been a great replacement!

i liked the old dumbledore - just seemed more like the calm wise character of the book. the new guy came off as being really flighty and not wise at all.

I like him he is OK. but I like the old one better

I liked Richard Harris better. he was more calm than the new Dumbledore.

yet I haven't seen movies 6-7 yet.

new he looks more like the dumbledore i imagined!!!

I like the new one, but bear in mind that the old one only had a chance to do one movie before he died. If he had continued, I'm sure he would have done great.

As if Michael Gambon was better! He didn't even read the books! Richard Harris was the perfect Dumbledore; he was calm, gentle and wise, he was just brilliant! Michael Gambon was way to aggressive, thought that could have been a result of the directing and producing of the third movie onwards. Chris Colombus directed the first two movies brilliantly and Richard Harris was fantastic.

richard harris was more like what i imagined dumbledore to be like. he was a kind sweet old man. but it is a little hard to picture him doing things like the cave scene. they were both pretty good.

I preferred Richard Harris, personally. He seemed more old and wise and mystical; I thought he was a better Dumbledore, he had the right aura for him. But he was a bit too old to play Dumbledore, especially for the Cave Scene in HBP.

I really liked both of them! I do wish that Richard Harris would've been able to be Dumledore in the rest of the movies ;( I was really shocked when I heard he died....

I really liked both of them! I do wish that Richard Harris would've been able to be Dumledore in the rest of the movies ;( I was really shocked when I heard he died....

both were good, but i preferred the first one. michael gambon was way to serious. dumbledore is supposed to be calm and funny in the face of disaster, that is the point!

Richard Harris was definitely the best. He was the perfect Dumbledore. He had the voice, decorum, love, sometimes silliness and brilliance that Dumbledore possesses. Michael Gambon completely ruined the character of Dumbledore. He was too angry and shouty and had absolutely no decorum. He seemed too indifferent not just towards Harry, but everyone and everything. Gambon himself said that he never read the books and didn't like the character of Dumbledore and did what he wanted with him. He says he basically played himself. "A little Irish, a little scary. That’s what I’m like in real life." Pathetic. Explains the weirdo accent of Dumbledore that destroyed everything in the movies. (I recommend reading the Hero Complex article about Gambon.)

I liked the second one better because I feel the second one portrayed the character as dumbledor better. He was louder rather than quiet-(old one)

I feel like Gambon looked the part but Harris had the feeling of Dumbledore spot on. A combination of the two would be perfect.

I prefer the kind, eccentric Dumbledore Harris portrays.

But alas (earwax), I can't imagine him pulling off some of the more intense scenes in the later movies, especially that wizard duel with Voldemort.

Both were good, but I gotta go with Richard Harris. He was wise and old, but still had a sense of humor and a twinkle in his eye. As for not pulling off the cave scene, pah. If he had his health, he could have pulled that off without breaking a sweat.

I don't think you're even supposed to think he can be a really powerful wizard. He's so aloof and frail looking, then he goes all bamf on you, so don't know what hit you. Harris is my perfect Dumbledore.

I will say though, out of all his HP movies, I liked Gambon's performance in HBP the best, even if I think the tower scene wasn't perfect.

The new one.

When I Google this on internet and I see this question being asked I always see so much disappointments towards Michael Gambon. People saying he wasn't good enough. But I don't that is fair.

The first couple of Harry Potter movies is more of a child storybook. Hogwarts is filmed in full sunshine and looks colourful and warm. But as you go further on in the series you see that it starts to get little darker. The films get dark , more adult, themes. That's the same with Dumbledore. In the first few films , he's a wise old wizard but in later films the character starts developing and you see different sides of Dumbledore.

So the casting they did perfectly. Everybody will agree that Richard Harris had the perfect looks as Dumbledore, but Michael Gambon brought more of Dumbledore's character into the films. I appreciate both gentleman's performances. There is no actor or actress who did a real terrible job on Potter.

I actually liked both because I thought that changing actors really showed the evolution of Dumbeldore's character. Richard Harris gave us an example of the wise and kindly Dumbledore we all originally imagined. I think it is very interesting how they had to switch him out in book four which is when coincidentally we start to see his character as flawed the same way everyone else is. So I think the two Dumbledores are both important to telling the story.

Neither. They just didn't have that twinkle in their eye. Richard Harris seemed to old. Michael Gambone is just to grumpy.

As of this comment, I've only seen the first four movies. I have to say that I liked Richard Harris better. When I saw him in the movies, he was EXACTLY like the Dumbledore I had pictured in my head when I read the books. He had that calmness, that sence of humor, and that twinkle in his eyes. He even looked like a wise headmaster.

Then I saw the third and fourth movies. Micheal Gambon was terrible as Dumbledore! He didn't look wise at all. He looked like a rediculously-dressed version of Gandalf with his beard tied! He wasn't kind and calm! He didn't have that twinkle in his eyes! He didn't have a sense of humor! He was completely unlike Dumbledore! There were so many scenes in the third and fourth movies where I cringed at his acting, because I could picture Richard Harris in those scenes doing so much better!

For me, Richard Harris literally WAS Dumbledore. No one will ever replace him in that role.

I prefer the first Dumbledor because he seemed like a wise old teacher and knew what he was doing. I think the reason I like him so much is because he had a surprising amount of energy and seemed more like the dumbledore we all know and love.

I will always love Richard Harris he was sooo much better

Richard Harris sounded like a decrepit zombie. Dumbledore in the books was old, yes, and calm, but I don't think he was supposed to sound like a heavily-makeuped extra on The Walking Dead. Every time he spoke I half expected him to quietly moan "braaaaaainnns". Dumbledore =/= Deckard Cain. At least Michael had the smallest amount of fire behind his voice, even if the yelling was out of character.

I like the new Dumbledore personally. But more as a stand-alone character, not as a adaptation of book Dumbledore. In terms of capturing book Dumbledore, the old one is spot on. I've always been curious to see how Richard Harris would have portrayed his character during darker, more serious times in the serious like the Half-Blood Prince.

Andrea wrote: "During the making of the series Harry Potter they had to find a new person to play the part of Dumbledore. Because from the 2nd to the 3rd movie they had different Dumbledore. Because the old one d..."

CLEARLY Michael Gambon because although Richard Harris was EXACTLY how I saw Albus Dumbledore when reading the first two books, I think he wouldn't have done nearly as well as Michael Gambon was in the last ones. For example, I don't think the scene where they retrieve the locket, would have been as good with Richard Harris instead of Michael Gambon.

First, though the second was awesome too.

I feel like Richard Harris portrayed Dumbledore as an old, feeble man who could easily be pushed around. Michael Gambon gave me more of an intensity and spirit that Harris failed to do. Honestly, the new Dumbledore outdid the first.

I liked them both.

Gambon plays a very physical interpretation of the character. He physically looks a lot younger than Harris, but aside from that he runs around grabbing people by the shoulders and getting right up into peoples' faces. He sometimes plays it so broadly as to be slapstick. His version is a substantially less cerebral Dumbledore. I find that to be at odds with most of the characterization from JKR, so Harris gets my vote.

The old one.
1. In the books Dumbledore isn't exactly the most animated person. He doesn't yell at Harry, or jump up from the dining hall table.

The second Dumbledore really blew it. He was animated and yelled at Harry. For example, "HARRY DID YOU PUT YOUR NAME IN THE GOBLET OF FIRE???"
like... chill bro.

the 2end one was the best to me

Richard Harris fit the part MUCH better, always polite. the only problem is his movement but its hard to find an 80 year old actor who can move like a 30 year old.