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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
I needed a new comedy series to cheer me up this summer, which I found in The White Lotus. Mike White is the writer, executive producer, director, and creator of this HBO satirical comedy miniseries. You may know him as the real Ned Schneebly from Richard Linklater’s School of Rock, a film in which he also serves as a screenwriter. I had the opportunity to see his miniseries ahead of release, which I will discuss here.
I will discuss the first episode of White’s The White Lotus (titled “Arrivals”) in this review. White serves as both the writer and the director, which will be the case for the rest of the series. There will be no spoilers present, as the title of the article suggests. Nonetheless, read on at your own discretion.
Plot Summary
As per HBO, here is the synopsis of this first episode.
As a new wave of guests arrive at the White Lotus, resort manager Armond tries to assuage an unreasonable Shane and his easy-going new wife Rachel, while spa director Belinda calms a grieving Tanya. Meanwhile, Nicole suggests her husband Mark distract himself from a health scare by spending time with their son Quinn, who’s been cast out by his sister Olivia and her friend Paula.
The episodes of this show work like Twin Peaks in that each one represents a day in the lives of these characters. For a total of six episodes, we will look at a week’s worth of events transpiring at the White Lotus.
Murray Bartlett portrays Armond, while Jolene Purdy plays the hotel trainee, Lani. Natasha Rothwell plays the hotel’s spa director, Belinda Lindsey. In smaller roles, Lukas Gage plays Dillon, an employee of the White Lotus, while Kekoa Scott Kekumano plays a hotel employee “by the tiki torches.”
Jake Lacy and Alexandra Daddario play a newly-wed couple, Shane and Rachel Patton.
Sydney Sweeney portrays Olivia Mossbacher. Connie Britton and Steve Zahn play the character’s parents, Nicole and Mark. Fred Hechinger plays Olivia’s (and Nicole and Mark’s son), Quinn. Brittany O’Grady plays Olivia’s friend, Paula, who joins the Mossbacher on their trip to the White Lotus.
Jennifer Coolidge plays the grieving woman, Tanya McQuoid.
Discussion
First, I need to say that Cristobal Tapia De Veer’s composition brings music to my ears. I must also praise Kathryn Madsen for her supervising sound editing and Mikael Sandgren for the music editing. Even the opening intro proves this series is worth signing up for. All the way to its final shot, Ben Kutchins’s cinematography is outstanding. Although, I should add that it only improves and gets mesmerizing as the series progresses. (Remind me to explain this for the second episode.)
Heather Persons and her assistant editor Bob Allen do great in the editing of this series’ pilot episode. Laura Fox’s production design is mind-blowing good. The series’ first episode alone showcases a perfect depiction of what Pacific hotel atmospheres with outsider tourists look like.
Alex Bovaird (and assistant, Brian Sprouse) succeeds at tackling the costume design of the characters, especially the women and the employees of the show. Not only that but Rebecca Hickey does great as department head of make-up art. Gia Barsocchini, Kristin Sifton, and Miia Kovero also do well here and should be commended for the hair and make-up.
Next, let me just ask: who asked Meredith Tucker to cast such a terrific cast of acting persons. Never have I thought that Daddario and Sweeney would fare well if put into a project together, but it just works here. I usually put performances and character development into the same category. Although, for this series — with such a big cast — I will separate the two.
Performances
In terms of how the characters are written, the women outdo the men, but maybe the men are not all that bad. Bartlett steps on broken water and Zahn does something just as unexpectedly gross, both of which made me laugh with some cringe. This is my third time seeing Hechinger on-screen, and he’s just different here. (The first two times were Zach Woods’s short film David and Netflix’s Fear Street Part I.)
With Daddario, she isn’t the same actress I’ve seen in the Percy Jackson films, Hall Pass, Texas Chainsaw, and Burying the Ex. She’s grown and transformed over the course of a decade. She still has talent in her bag, and I hope she never loses it.
In juxtaposition, Sweeney isn’t the sweet girl that you’ve seen in HBO’s Euphoria. Her role in The White Lotus is characterized as a “bitch,” as Daddario’s Rachel states in a succeeding episode. This new type of character only made me love the actress even more. I also love her rapport with O’Grady, which evolves as the series progresses.
Purdy and Rothwell are great as the hotel’s employee characters who have to put up with the matters that happen on the premises. Last summer, I thought to myself that the latter needs a large role in which she can perform great and develop more. I hope she continues this feat with HBO’s Insecure, which is set to conclude in its upcoming fifth season.
Lastly, we have Coolidge, a comedy legend. If you haven’t seen her in the American Pie films, in A Cinderella Story, in Legally Blonde, or in satire/parody films, what are you doing with your life?
Character Development
In this pilot, Rachel is humble and not as entitled as her husband. I like that Lacy’s Shane is trying to be a good new husband and isn’t intentionally being an ass of himself, at least, in this episode. He doesn’t relent in the conflict that he’s causing. We do see great development in this character, as we see a hint of what eventually becomes of him in the aftermath of their stay at the hotel.
Zahn and Hechinger’s father and son duo do establish a bond. They discuss the fleeting presence of their manhoods and that their time is not forever. This theme and subplot will soon develop as the series progresses.
Sweeney and O’Grady’s respective characters, Olivia and Paula, develop beautifully in the episode. However, we do not see a rise in conflict until we reach its dinnertime scene. This only provides us a glimpse of what’s to come and just how much of a “friend” Paula is to Olivia.
I like Purdy’s development as Lani and would like to see more of her in the series. (I’ve yet to see the latter three episodes of the miniseries, so I don’t know what her fate is yet.)
I laughed at how well Rothwell and Coolidge (as hotel employee and client, respectively) perform and develop together. They do fabulous together, and I’m arguing with myself on whether they have the best character dynamic in the episode over everyone else.
Final Thoughts
White writes his characters fantastically, and we see this through the actors’ differing behaviors and viewpoints. This first episode of his miniseries only introduces its characters and allows them to settle into the hotel. Even then, it has exceeded my expectations for what will happen over the course of six episodes. It may seem small but make no mistake. The White Lotus paints a good picture of outsiders’ troubles and insiders’ struggles at a Pacific island resort. Time there works differently, as the Mossbacher parents discuss (and Shane Patton wrongly claims).
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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
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