*** Spoiler warning this blog post includes spoilers from Cruel Summer season 1***
- Story Overview:
- 1993:
- 1994:
- 1995:
- Style Overview:
- 1993:
- 1994:
- 1995:
- The Grooming Storyline:
- 1993:
- 1994:
- 1995:
Cruel Summer is a horrifyingly gripping series that showcases the dangerous of grooming. Packed with twist and turn, Cruel Summer keeps you on the edge of your seat, but it serves as a cautionary tale exploring grooming.
About
Story Overview:
The series follows Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia) as she is accused of knowing about the kidnapping of Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt) and not speaking up to take Kate’s place.
Taking place in 1993, 1994 and 1995 the series follows Kate and Jeanette as they go head to head against each other in a legal battle. With Kate accusing Jeanette of knowing about her captivity for months, and Jeanette attempting to prove her innocence that she did not know about Kate’s captivity.
1993:
The series starts in 1993, where Kate is seen as the perfect girl with the perfect life. She’s the most popular girl in school with an amazing group of best friends and the most perfect boyfriend Jamie (Froy Gutierrez). She comes from the richest family in town, with her step-father (Ben Cain) an extra NFL star and Skylin royalty and her mother (Andrea Anders) who was appears to be the pictures perfect mother.
Until on July 31 she goes missing after her step-fathers announcement party for his mayoral run. The town of Skylin is sent into a frenzy trying to figure out what happened to Kate and trying to find her.
The 1993 timeline explores the cracks in the Wallis family’s perfect perception. From Kate finding her step-father getting cozy with his colleague
1994:
It wasn’t until June 22 1994 Kate was released from captivity. After being gone for a year she returns to find Jeanette turner the quirky outcast has had an extreme glow up and taken her place, quite literally. Jeanette has taken her bestfriends, is now dating Jamie and now is seen as the popular it girl of Skylin.
In the wake of her return, Kate is invited to be featured on a local news station to discuss her captivity and she drops a bomb. That Jeanette saw her when she was being held in captivity and has known where she was for months.
1995:
Setting the 1995 timeline to showcase the legal battle between the Wallis against the Turners attempting to prove Jeanettes innocents.
With the 1993 timeline focusing on building the relationships and foundations of the characters and their families. Throughout 1993 the Wallis families perfect preceitpion begins to crack, with scandals testing their strength.
Style Overview:
The series uses a unique approach to storytelling. Setting the story and each episode in three years, 1993, 1994 and 1995. With each year having a distinctive colour and lighting aesthetic that reflects the tone and mood of the year.
1993:
Is reflected in bright colours and golden lighting reflecting a sense of child like innocents.
During this time the characters are the authentic versions of themself. They are young and nieve with dream of how their lives will unfold. They hope for a big bright furture with filled with fairytale romance.
1994:
In 1994 the colours become dimmer. Reflecting the lose of innocences in the characters. As the bright and bold styles fade into dull colour schemes and plain wardobes.
During this time Kate has started her relationship with Martin and moved into his house. While Jeanette matured and is blossoming into the popular girl she was always wanted to be.
Everything seems perfect to the characters, when in reality the characters are starting down a dark path.
1995:
The colours and lighting become extremly dark. The characters are now dressed in dark colours of greys and blacks. The ligting is minimal creating an ery and dark aesthetic.
Reflecting the characters dark turn. Both Jeanette and Kate took the path down the wrong road and suffered extreme traumas. They both feel as if the world is against them and have a darkened outlook on the world.
The Grooming Storyline:
Cruel Summer does an amazing job at showcasing the impacts of grooming and how it happens in a authentic manner. In a gripping and horrifying portrayal.
1993:
When Martin Harris moves to Skylin he becomes the talk of the town. The new young teach is extremely attractive and charismatic, it’s not hard for the town to fall in love with him. His charming personality and caring perona quickly capture the admiration of the town.
As he is set to start his job at Skylin High School in the fall, he quickly earns the respect and interest of the local students. Many are intrigued to learn more about the new teacher, and Martin is quick in wanting to bond with his future students.
He takes a particular interest in Kate and she is quick to reciprocate. When her Mother invites Jamie and Martin to join them at their cabin, Kate is quick to skip out on time with Jamie to spend more time with Martin. Leading the pair to spend the night by the fire talking and bonding.
As Kate’s life begins to crumble, Martin begins to notices her distress and offers her support. As Kate’s relationship with the adults in her life from being seen as the perfect little daughter to a maturing women, she begins to feel lost.
The bond with her parents fades and tensions rise when Kate begins to questions her family morals and values. By questions the possibility of her step-fathers infidelity Kate ruins the relationship with her parents. Resulting in a heated argument that sees her mother slap her.
Sending rifts in her perfect life and turning her world upside down. Feeling betrayed and alone she runs to the only adult she can trust, Martin Harris. She begs him to let her stay until things cool down.
It starts off well, with Martin treating Kate as his girlfriend. He cooks for her, and plans movie nights for the pair. Playing house together and taking their relationship to the next level.
However it all comes crashing down when school starts. Martin spends most his days teaching leaving Kate alone. Where she quickly becomes bored and begins to miss her old life and her friends.
By the time christmas roles around, the searches for Kate have slowed but suscipisons remain high. Everyone in the town has their own theory and Marting begins to become paranoid.
1994:
When Kate reveals her boredom to Martin he quickly turns against her, telling her he can’t let her go. Confiding that if he lets her go he will go to jail and the two of them can never be together. Kate promises she won’t tell a soul if he lets her go, and plans to create a story about where she went to protect him.
He later reveals to Kate he was forced to leave his old job after a girl acused him of inappropriate behaviour. Runing his career and perception in his old town. Revealing he came to Skylin for a fresh start and letting Kate go would ruin his life all over again.
Martin then traps Kate in the basement to prevent her from leaving. Her comes to visit her only to give her food and suppiles.
With each passing day and many failed attempts at an escape, Kate begins to question if she’ll ever she the real world again.
On June 21 Martin came to visit Kate and infrom her that the police were on to him and were coming back with a warent. He then proceeds to pull a gun on her.
Pleading with her not to kill her, Martin trips rushing towards her dropping the gun. Kate quickly and nervously takes the gun and kills him.
She later calls the police the next day and tells them Martin was killed in a shoot out to protect herself.
When is brought back home she struggles to return to normal life. She doesn’t relate to her friends anymore and she still can’t trust her parents. When she finds out that Jeanette has taken her friends and boyfriend, she turns against her and lies on a newscast saying Jeanette saw her in capivity.
1995:
1995 follows Kate and she struggles to return to normal life. While her goal of destorying Jeanettes life that was once her, escalates as the town turns against the Turner family.
Through tearing Jeanette down, she realize that no matter what happens with the lawsuit against Jeanette her life will never be the same. She is not the same person she was before and she cannot return to that verison of herself.
Kate begins a journey to healing and discovering the new her. She finds new friends and begins to understand what happened to her wasn’t her fault and although she cannot change the past she can learn to live with her trauma.
She later drops the lawsuit against Jeanette and begins to help her restore her name by telling the true story.
I hope you can watch Cruel Summer with a critical eye and appreciate the creative minds who pulled the story togther! It’s not easy tackling such a dark topic, but it is extremly important to have these kinds of stories told and to raise awarness on these topics to protect others!
Have you seen Cruel Summer? What do you think of the grooming storyline? Comment down below!
Popcorn Perspectives 