Is Puck supposed to be middle-aged?
In the 1935 version, Pucked was brillantly played by a 15 year old Mickey Rooney, but in this version, he is played by Stanley Tucci who seems far too OLD for the role! Odd casting?
shareI believe the 1935 version is superior in every way, but it's difficult to fault them for casting Tucci as Puck. Puck being at various times a fairy, sprite, hobgoblin or even a demon, he is preternatural and likely immortal, so his age tends to be as flexible as the stories involving such creatures. They also seem to be variable depending on which area they come from. In at least one area Puck is known as Robin Goodfellow and I believe in that guise he is usually pictured as an adult. Over the centuries the nature of the fay has changed according to various writer's visions. Much as the nature of vampires is being radically changed recently.
If we stick just to A Midsummer Night's Dream then Puck is a shrewd and knavish sprite that wanders the night and appears to be Oberon's jester and servant. In the First Folio of Shakespeare's plays he is first introduced as Robin Goodfellow, but in the same scene, he is also called Puck.
It seems in the oldest tales of the fay, they were taller than humans, exquisitely beautiful, and had no wings. At times they were gods, angels or something between those and humans. The name Puck also has been used for an individual sprite, or to describe a larger group of mischievous ones.
I believe the 1935 version is superior in every way, but it's difficult to fault them for casting Tucci as Puck.
Agree on both points. Midsummer '35 knows it's a Comedy/Fantasy. Midsummer '99 seems to fancy itself an angsty Tragedy and the results are pretty bland (Hoffman's Restoration from 1995 had a better balance of humor and drama). That said, I can understand why Rooney's performance is of the "love or hate it" variety. He may have been the wrong age for the way they seemed to have directed him to play the role. Rooney plays Puck like an mischievous child--except he's clearly not a child. But neither is he quite an adult. He was going through that oh so pleasant process of puberty and occasionally it's a bit off putting. Had Rooney been given this role in his 20s, I think I would have enjoyed it more, personally. (And of course, this is why women are often given these kinds of roles. They can retain that impish quality longer.)
Anyway, I give Tucci a lot of kudos for pulling off the role so well. His Puck has great reactions and chemistry with both Oberon and the audience.
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