Skip to main content

I binge-watched 'Cruel Summer' and got nostalgic for '90s stuff


Last week, having walked home from the market—a nice, effortless stroll but for the danger of contracting coronavirus—I cleaned the house, fed the dogs, showered, and played with my kids to watch four episodes of Cruel Summer. Set in a small town in Texas in the early nineties, Freeform's new series tells the story of two teen girls: the dorky Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia) and the popular Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt). It reminds me of Pretty Little Liars, but when I first heard the title I thought it was a biopic of Bananarama in their prime years.

Cruel Summer is just so-so, but it has enough charm to keep me interested. The secret is to make things that appeal to my inner teen without equating youth with stupidity. It's also loaded with iconic throwback hits, including songs by The Cranberries, INXS, Mazzy Star, and 4 Non Blondes. If you were a kid in the '90s, the soundtrack will likely take you right back.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

When chocolate meets art

I heard it's National Chocolate Day, so I thought I'd share this video about Orlando's newest and sweetest attraction.
Post a Comment
Read more

The Three-Step Secret

Have you ever encountered a painting that, up close, is pure chaos—a riot of color, a tantrum of brushstrokes? Yet, take a few steps back, and suddenly, the mess organizes itself. As if by cruel magic or divine intervention, the disarray snaps into clarity. That is the experience of viewing the art of Montana Engels . Her work is a testament to this phenomenon. Up close, Montana's canvases appear as nothing more than abstract, hand-painted stripes. Then you move away. Instantly, the mess resolves into a stunning, realistic portrait. The technique is extraordinary, turning proximity into confusion and distance into focus. Montana wasn’t always a phenomenon. Her creativity was just a hobby. Then came Belgium’s Got Talent . Suddenly, she was noticed. Now, she's everywhere. If you have a Facebook account, you might want to follow her .
Post a Comment
Read more

Italy's True Movie Poster King

What you see here is the hand-crafted magic of Renato Casaro, the late Italian designer who practically defined an era of cinematic cool. His work wasn't just advertising; it was art. Casaro's journey into becoming one of the most recognizable poster artists wasn't by chance; it was a pure obsession. As a kid, he was fascinated by billboards, trying to mimic the styles of Norman Rockwell and Angelo Cesselon. Think of a teen so determined that he was drawing right onto the walls of a local cinema just to snag a few free tickets. Casaro created posters for a lot of Spaghetti Westerns. His big break came with A Fistful of Dollars in 1964. The movie starred Clint Eastwood and was directed by Sergio Leone. The poster didn’t just promote the film; it helped make it a global hit. Naturally, Leone came calling again, commissioning posters for My Name Is Nobody (1973) and the epic crime saga, Once Upon a Time in America (1984). A Casaro poster is easy to spot because of his uniqu...
Post a Comment
Read more