Cheeky (2003)

Consumed with sadness after the death of his wife and subsequent rejection from his son, a widower, at the urging of his friends, opts to appear on a vulgar, wildly popular game show (for ... See full summary »

Director:

David Thewlis

Writer:

David Thewlis

Stars:

David Thewlis, Lisa Gorman, Sean Ward

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Thewlis	...	Harry Sankey
Lisa Gorman	...	Nancy Sankey
Sean Ward	...	Sam Sankey
Rosalind Knight	...	Pam
Linda Kerr Scott	...	Peggy
Eddie Marsan	...	Reg
Mark Benton	...	Big Mick
John Henshaw	...	Kenny
Johnny Vegas	...	Alf Price
Ashley Thewlis	...	Karen
Joseph Johnston	...	Crusty
Benedict Macdonald	...	Snot (as Ben Macdonald)
Tim Potter	...	Horace
Suzanne Nixon	...	Harriet
Stephen Bent	...	Albert Sharples

Storyline

Consumed with sadness after the death of his wife and subsequent rejection from his son, a widower, at the urging of his friends, opts to appear on a vulgar, wildly popular game show (for which his wife signed him up) and watches his life start to change for the better.

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Plot Keywords:

sadness | rejection | fictional game show | quiz show | poem | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

UK France

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 August 2006 (France)

Also Known As:

Descarado

Filming Locations:

Ambleside, Cumbria, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

EuropaCorp, Xingu Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Thewlis, who wrote the screenplay, was not meant to direct the film, let alone be in it. He has since said that "it's just too much stress. It's just awful", and that with Cheeky he "didn't have a very good time and I don't like the finished product... It's not rubbish, but it's not what it was supposed to be. It was supposed to be something much stranger. It was supposed to be very inspired by Buñuel, but you'd struggle to see that."

User Reviews

Touching and subversively funny

David Thewlis' Cheeky is all heart, an extremely touching, human story of a quiet man reeling from the loss of his loving wife and desperate to connect emotionally with their grieving son.

The wounded, gentle Harry may come as a surprise to moviegoers remembering Thewlis' searingly aggressive performance in Mike Leigh's Naked, but in the end it simply illustrates the versatility and range of this brainy actor/writer who always seems to be the best thing in every project he tackles.

That said, it's important to point out that the movie also manages to be flat-out funny. The humor is often subversive, though, much of it hidden in visual business in the background of otherwise serious scenes or throwaway dialog from supporting characters. Thewlis' sense of humor is whimsical, dark and harbors a solid appreciation for the absurd (A Cheeky quiz show question: Homosexual penguins: True or False?).

The supporting cast is delightful, especially Ian Hart as Harry's doltish brother-in-law and Lesley Sharp, who has done such impressive work previously opposite Thewlis in Naked and the television miniseries Dandelion Dead.

The DVD is a European PAL release, but is not region-coded and can be played on DVD players in the U.S. Track it down--it's worthwhile viewing.