Richard Harris represented the audience in that movie without heroes, and the torture he endured was felt by all of us as all of our built-up illusions of Hollywood Westerns were ripped away by the brutal reality Clint Eastwood was trying to demonstrate.

In fact, Clint was beating up himself in a way for having help perpetuate the sugar-coating of Western sheriffs and gunslingers with his own career. The movie was penance for his previous sins against the truth, and still he remained unable to forgive himself for them. Hence, Unforgiven.

All three available on DVD, I might mention, and more worthy of your consumer dollar than what will be unleashed upon the world November 15 at a theater near you.

Chris Columbus's hallmark is taking great acting talents like prime cuts of beef and then grinding them up and blanding them into oblivion so he can sell them as tasteless standardized patties for his McMovies. He took a thick, rich, meaty steak of an actor called Richard Harris and covered him with a mountain of ketchup to bland the flavor and character out of the man. When that wasn't enough, he then smothered the man in makeup, a cumbersome costume, and ludicrous prosthetics.

Maggie Smith and Alan Rickman had absolutely no excuses for their dismal performances, because you could see their faces as clear as day. Robbie Coltrane can't make any excuses about the bear, because he's spent his whole life acting through yards of fat and still showing his depth beyond that. What's a lousy beard and giant suit to a giant of a man?

It took a lousy director like Chris Columbus to bring down a great like Richard Harris, to destroy and emasculate such a compassionate character as J.K. Rowling's Albus Dumbledore, and for that he will remain forever unforgiven, no matter how he tries to squirm and atone for his sins against the intelligence of his audience. Anybody who doubts that Chris Columbus will dedicate the second Harry Potter movie as a tribute to Richard Harris is a fool, but anybody who actually considers it a tribute to Richard Harris is an even bigger fool.

Actors are the material from which a director must mold a movie. Their talents translate into the richness of the clay and the versatility that a director can use to craft them into their roles. Hacks like Chris Columbus merely take pre-fired clay, slap paint and gaudy special effects on them, and then spend twice as much time hunting for stunt doubles with which to populate the action sequences.

It's not Movie Magic of old. It's Movie Voodoo, and it's an abomination.

When Richard Harris' niece said she wouldn't speak to him if he turned down the role of Dumbledore, Richard Harris should have followed his instincts...

And slapped her.

Hard.