Cheeky!

Released by: Cult Epics
Released on: 9/25/2012
Director: Tinto Brass
Cast: Yuliya Mayarchu, Jarno Beradi, Francesca Nunzi, Max Parodi
Year: 2000
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The Movie:

Tinto Brass. The very mention of his name should instantly conjure up an image of an amazing derrií¨re. With a career that spans over five decades, his first feature of the new millennium continued the tradition he created for himself: making gorgeous women look even more amazing thanks to his incredible sense of creating beauty out of what to many would appear to be cheap sleaze.

Cheeky tells the story of a petite blonde named Carla (Yuliya Mayarchuk) who makes the move from Rome to London and is awaiting the arrival of her boyfriend Matteo (Jarno Berardi). Carla apparently lives in a world where uninhibited sex and unashamed beautiful people are ready and willing at anytime to get down and groove anywhere they feel like it. Not a bad world actually. At every corner of Carla's life seems to be her realtor Moira (Francesca Nunzi), who desperately wants to share carnal ways with Carla and in no way hides that fact. Actually everyone Carla meets wants a piece of her, including the director himself in a great cameo where the stogie smoker feels her up as he critiques her photos. Matteo, still wasting time in Rome, learns of another lover of Carla's that he suspects is a current one, and the jealousy overtakes him. He finds his way to London, finds his way to Carla, and just may realize jealousy has its advantages.

As far as modern softcore porn goes, the story isn't half bad. A hell of a lot better than the American-made crap on late night cable where a bunch of skanks sit around a table and talk about fantasies. This story is somewhat engaging, enough so that the viewer should be at least somewhat interested in what happens, and the acting is good enough so the characters are interesting. But at its core it's a skin movie and its purpose is to arouse, and arousing it is. Throughout the running time, gorgeous female flesh is exposed and in erotic settings that are inviting and visually pleasing. Yuliya Mayarchuk is intensely attractive and the Brass' camera loves her at every angle. And Francesca Nunzi is nothing to sneer at either, seeming to have channeled a 1970s Lina Romay in this film. For this viewer it was impossible not make that comparison every time Nunzi was on screen.

The movie is chock full of flesh and fornication, but the spa scene is without a doubt the best. It's serene, tranquil, and down right sexy. The colors, the lights, the shimmering water, the glistening curves…this portion of the movie is worth the price of admission alone. Pino Donaggio, composer for movies such as The Howling and Dressed To Kill, provides the music for this one and although it doesn't rank up there with his best, it's still a nice score. The opening music is pretty catchy.

The movie may be appropriate enough for couples, but it's as explicit as it can be without being hardcore, so if your other half isn't used to that, be forewarned. There is one quick finger insertion that stands out in memory (there may be more than one), and other than the absence of real boners (there're fake ones) there's not much left to the imagination. Its nice to see that Brass was able to continue on with making successful softcore in a world dominated by the hard stuff, something that Russ Meyer sadly wasn't willing to do even before he got sick. We need movies like this to keep that genre from being a joke in the 21st century.

Video/Audio/Extras:

Cult Epics does a really nice job with the transfer of Cheeky, presenting the film with a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, and in 1080p. The colors look great, as do the skin tones. Visible is plenty of natural grain and the image is quite detailed, with only some minor print damage that's barely even noticeable. A very pleasing presentation of some very pleasing bodies in action. The audio chores are handled by a 2.0 DTS-HD track, well tracks actually, as there is an Italian language one with English subtitles and an English language track. The Italian track was selected for this review and it's probable that the eroticism is enhanced by the Italian language track for those who don't speak it. Makes it more exotic. No issues to report on the sound front, and the balance seems proper. Extras are pretty light and can be found on the DVD version by the same disc label: an 8-minute talk with Brass, the film's trailer, and a still gallery. The interview is fantastic, but sadly way too short.

The Final Word:

A great later entry in Brass' catalog, Cheeky should keep you busy. It's definitely worth picking up.

Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!