Cheeky

There is a useful directness to Cheeky, a comedy shaped by Tinto Brass with a firm understanding of its audience. In Cheeky, Yuliya Mayarchuk provides the anchor while Jarno Berardi introduces a contrasting energy. Without revealing later complications, Cheeky opens from this situation: While scouting out apartments in London for her Venetian boyfriend, Carla rents an apartment that overlooks the Thames. The resulting its 1h 31m running time feels most convincing whenever Cheeky trusts behaviour more than explanation.

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The narrative of Cheeky works from a simple but productive collision between London and Venetian. Through Yuliya Mayarchuk, Cheeky keeps that premise rooted in a reaction the audience can understand. Tinto Brass introduces Carla at a useful point, giving Cheeky a reason to change pace without abandoning its emotional line. The handling of Thames is not equally fresh, yet Cheeky usually earns attention through clarity rather than surprise alone.

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The acting in Cheeky is anchored by Yuliya Mayarchuk, who treats even functional scenes as opportunities to reveal character. Jarno Berardi answers that approach with a different energy, giving Cheeky welcome friction whenever the pace begins to settle. Around them, Francesca Nunzi helps Cheeky feel like an ensemble piece rather than a vehicle with decorative support. Under Tinto Brass, the performances in Cheeky share a tone even when the writing gives them unequal depth.

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What Cheeky has to say is rooted in embarrassment, status and the gap between confidence and reality. The experience of Yuliya Mayarchuk carries that question through Cheeky without reducing the character to an example. Thames helps Cheeky test the theme through consequence instead of explanation. When Tinto Brass allows ambiguity to remain, Cheeky becomes more involving than a simple statement of intent.

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As director of Cheeky, Tinto Brass proves engaging in bursts but unable to maintain the same control in the transitions between intimate material and larger demands. A strong scene in Cheeky often begins with a modest detail before Tinto Brass lets its meaning expand. For Cheeky, worthwhile ideas compete with an uneven structure because the central tone remains visible even during busy passages. The weakness in Cheeky is that the pace alternates between hurry and drift, although Tinto Brass usually finds the original rhythm again.

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Cheeky gains much of its identity from well judged reactions, a choice that makes the world readable as well as attractive. The contribution of Lion Pictures allows Cheeky to combine well judged reactions with a consistent visual language. Within its Italy setting, Cheeky makes particularly good use of performer rhythm when the story needs to change scale. Sound and editing preserve the personality of Cheeky by supporting detail instead of announcing every intended response.

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My final view is that Cheeky provides a qualified recommendation for comedy fans who respond to personality and timing. Yuliya Mayarchuk supplies the emotional memory of Cheeky, while Tinto Brass keeps the genre machinery readable. A concern remains because the pace alternates between hurry and drift across part of Cheeky, yet the better passages retain their force. What earns Cheeky consideration is not perfection but the presence of choices that feel made for this story.