Feb 17, 2022

"Secrets of Summer": Teens Save an Argentine Jungle Resort with a Wakeboarding Contest. And Singing.

 


Secrets of Summer, an Argentine teen drama originally titled Cielo Grande (Big Sky).  The icon displays two girls in the foreground, one with a surboard, and two guys in the background, one with a guitar.  There'll be music and surfing, and maybe some beefcake.  Gay characters?  Argentina legalized same-sex marriage before the U.S. did, so maybe....

Scene 1: A private plane.  Boy Without Guitar (Victor Varona) is busily texting while Girl with Surfboard -- Steff -- is reading an actual phyiscal letter, from someone named Paula: "I want to thank you for accepting me as part of the family. And Cielo Grande is way more than just some trophy. An important part of your past is hidden there."  



Scene 2:
Establishing shots of a river flowing through a jungle. So, another resort in the wilderness, with no scenes set in Buenos Aires?  Non-Surfboard Girl  -- Luz looks delighted as she walks into the resort, Cielo Grande. A sign tells us "Big opening!" in English.  At the front desk, she greets  Guitar Boy -- Julian (Guido Messina).  "Welcome back!  There's a team meeting starting in a moment."

They hug, then gaze into each other's eyes in front of a trophy saying "Summer Crush."  Rather blatant, aren't you?

Meanwhile, on the plane, Steff tries to get her companion -- Tony, her wakeboarding coach -- to look up from his screen and check out the scenery.  "Um...yeah, it's nice."  He's sort of femme.  I'd think he was gay, except then the cast wouldn't be able to divide into two couples.

Plot dump: Steff plans to compete in Summer Crush, the same wakeboarding competition that Dad won 20 years ago.  (Wakeboarding is surfing while being towed by a boat).  Tony didn't want to come, but Steff insisted.


Scene 3:
At the resort's staff, Luz hugs the other employees: boss Augusto (Martin Tecchi), Charlie (Luan Brum, left), and newcomer Nati (a girl)  The boss reveals that Summer Crush is back on after a hiatus of 12 years. They all get t-shirts to advertise the contest -- lots of cheering.  Plus they're re-opening Sky Vibes, the karaoke bar!  More cheering.  Plus Steffi, the world-famous celebrity wakeboarder, is coming!  Wait, a ringer?  Contests are no fun when it's obvious who will win.

Scene 4:  Luz and the newcomer head to their cabin.   Plot dump: Sky Vibes is important to Luz because her grandparents always sang there, back in the old days.  Their song was "Emergency Love," from 2003.  If they are in their 60s, wouldn't the abuelos prefer "Dancing Queen"?  

Meanwhile, Steff and Coach Tony are at a dock on the river, waiting for their boat.   The decrepit "tuna can" finally arrives, piloted by Charlie from Scene 3.  Tony complains about the lack of glitz.  

Scene 5: Luz unpacking and singing while Newbie Nati plays the guitar.    Then Luz gives Newbie Nati a wakeboarding lesson, which allows us to see what it's all about. 

Meanwhile, Steff and Coach Tony try to get checked into their rooms.  Tony scoffs because it is taking too long.  When the desk clerk turns his back, Steff steals the paper where he wrote down the computer password!  

On the way to their rooms, they meet Julian (the Luz-hugging guy).  Tony is not impressed with him.  So not gay?

When they leave, the desk clerk calls the Boss: "The squirrel is in the tree."  Is there some nefarious plot going on?  I hope so.

Scene 6:  Julian shows Steff her cabin (they're all separate, surrounded by jungle).  Breakfast starts at 7:00, no room service after midnight, no flirting. Well, he's got a crush on Luz, so....

When he leaves, Steff reads the letter from Scene 1 again, and starts to cry.

Tony calls to complain about what a total dump the resort is, and to tell her that they will be training at 10:00 am.  Wait -- did they arrive early in the morning?  Don't most hotels expect you to arrive in the late afternoon?

Steff and her wakeboard equipment hit the beach.  All the guests seem to be teenagers.   Lots of shots of Steff or her pro stand-in doing wakeboarding stunts.  Luz and Newbie Nati, having their wakeboarding lesson, almost collide with her!  Wouldn't that be the drivers' fault?

 Surprise!  Coach Tony knows Luz, and is delighted to see her!  He doesn't explain how.  An old girlfriend, or a wakeboard student? I'm still hoping that he is gay.

While packing up, Luz and Newbie Nati buddy-bond and gush at each other.  Nati says she signed on at the resort to "try something new...save some money."  "And meet someone special?"  Luz suggests.  "Well...maybe..." Nati says, fluffing her hair and grinning...and...whoa, those girls are into each other!  But I thought Luz liked Julian from Scene 2? 


Scene 7:
Charlie delivers another guest, a middle-aged man with a beard: Ron Lavalle (Francisco Bass).  He yells at his teenage son, Ian, for poking him with a drone.  Wait -- Dad got off the boat alone.  So his son was already there?   Then he complains that Ian is too busy with his youtube videos to concentrate on his schoolwork.  "But in three years I'll hit a  million on subscribers, and the money will start rolling in!"  Ian seems a little younger than the others, so he probably won't be involved in the "who's dating whom" plotlines.

As they are checking in, Augusto the Manager introduces himself.  "You look familiar.  Have you been here before?"  Aha, a mystery!  But they switch the conversation immediately to Teenage Ian getting all excited because his favorite pop duo is performing at the resort.  

Scene 8:  Augusto the Manager discovers that most of the wakeboard competitors have dropped out, so he's going to ask the staff to compete.  But...no one will pay to see that!  The resort will go bankrupt, and they'll all lose their jobs!

Meanwhile,  Sr. Lavalle and Ian (Byron Barbieri) greet Steff, who isn't happy to see them: "Why are you here, Dad?  I don't like you watching me compete!" Aha, he's the Dad who won the wakeboarding contest 20 years ago.

Scene 9:  Luz, Newbie Nati, Julian, and Charlie begin fixing up the decrepit, long-closed Sky Vibes, a cabin in the jungle.  Julian says that he used to be a regular. Hasn't Sky Vibes been closed for 12 years?  His favorite song was "Trapped," by Bruce Springsteen (1981).  How old is this guy?  He sings the whole song while gazing at Luz.  The others join in.

Coach Tony, walking past, is entranced --by the song, or maybe by Luz.  They chat; they're about to kiss when Luz is called away.  So Tony isn't gay, just feminine.  

Meanwhile, Steff tracks Sr. Lavalle and Teenage Ian down again, so  the spoiled brat can yell at them some more: "I don't want you here!  I can't believe you're doing this!  Ruining everything!"  Dad just wants to watch her compete -- what a jerk!   

Scene 10: Luz and Newbie Nati waiting tables in the resort dining room.  Coach Tony comes in to flirt.  Manager Antonio drops by, and Tony talks him into making Luz their guide.  They need a guide?  It's a bunch of cabins in the jungle.  Oh...wait, he just wants Luz to hang out.

That night staff and guest gather at the beach, and Manager Antonio announces the return of Summer Crush, the wakeboarding contest. Steff sneaks off, goes to the front desk, and hacks into the resort computer.  But before she can find what she's looking for, the Desk Clerk comes in, suspicious.  She hides behind the counter.  The end.


Beefcake:
Surprisingly, none.  What is the point of a tv series about a summer resort without guys in swimsuits?

Other Sights:  Rough-shod cabins in the jungle.  They look like something from Gilligan's Island.

Gay Characters:  I thought Tony would be gay, but he's totally into Luz.  Maybe Nati wants a girlfriend. but Luz and Steff are both spoken for.

Mystery:  What is Steff looking for?   Otherwise it looks like a "let's save our resort by putting on a show," like the 1940s barn musicals starring Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland."

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