BRAND NEW CHERRY FLAVOR Season One
Hollywood Scares
UK/US Netflix, streaming now Showrunner Nick Antosca Cast Rosa Salazar, Eric Lange,
Catherine Keener, Jeff Ward
We’ve become acclimatised to a certain level of cinematic ambition in our TV shows. So when a series arrives that appears a bit more cashstrapped, it can feel more like you’re watching a noughties-era rerun on Syfy than one of the new streaming dramas of 2021.
That Brand New Cherry Flavor is set in the mid-’90s may excuse its rickety Charmed-style production values, but over eight episodes its lack of visual flair (there’s virtually no location filming) can edge into monotony. At first, the series looks like your usual straight-off-the-greyhound Hollywood fairytale, but Lisa Nova (Rosa Salazar – hands down the best thing about the series) is no bright-eyed ingenue, having written and directed an arty horror short that’s piqued the interest of sleazy big-shot Lou Burke (Eric Lange).
Despite early signs that it may be riffing on #Metoo, the series soon plunges into full-on horror as Lisa, with the help of hippy-cumsorceress Boro (a sensibly understated Catherine Keener) sets about putting a curse on Burke, after he reneges on a deal for her to direct the movie version of said short.
Though it has the appearance of being transgressive and trippy, Brand New Cherry Flavor always feels like a diet version of its many influences. There’s something of Mulholland Drive in its seamy portrayal of Los Angeles, and of Twin Peaks: The Return in its often wilful obscurantism. Then there’s its Cronenberg-esque obsession with body horror and its ’90s sex thriller tropes. But it never feels truly committed to any of these. Like a straight-a student from a nice family slapping on the kohl eyeliner, it feels like it’s trying too hard to be weird. Steve O’brien
This series covers just 66 out of 344 pages of Todd Grimson’s original 2011 novel, so there’s scope for more seasons.