The HBO limited series The White Lotus features a recognizable ensemble cast and a largely beloved writer/director in Mike White. With just the first episode that premiered on July 11, it has already established its darkly comedic tone and seems set to explore themes of privilege, mortality, and jealousy. Set at a tropical resort for which the show is named, a boat full of new guests arrives, and they are greeted by manager Armond (Murray Bartlett, Tales of the City) and his staff, which includes spa director Belinda (Natasha Rothwell, Insecure) and new trainee Lani (Jolene Purdy, WandaVision). The guests are comprised of a family, newlyweds, and a grieving woman, all bringing their own set of issues to the island.
The show opens with Shane (Jake Lacy, Carol) solemnly sitting alone at the airport, teetering between what looks like shock and disbelief before a couple across from him strikes up one of those conversations you desperately want to avoid when you have that much going on in your head. By the end of the painful exchange, we learn that Shane was on his honeymoon at the White Lotus, someone died, and his wife isn’t with him right now. Circling back to one week prior, he and the other guests are arriving at the resort by boat. While the implication is that his wife is the one who somehow winds up dead, there are several ripe candidates who could earn that unfortunate distinction by the end of the week.
Just an episode in, this certainly isn’t a series that you can place firmly in the comedy or drama category. It seems like it’s shaping up to lean more dramatic, but will pull from the eccentric and absurd behavior of its characters to bring levity to otherwise tense or awkward circumstances. Most of these guests already come from money, each more pretentious than the next, and have expectations for how they should be treated, which of course is amplified when they are paying top dollar for a luxury experience. Watching them react to mild inconveniences is nauseating, but it’s illuminating to view things from the perspective of the staff.
The cast is recognizable, but at times Maui doesn’t seem to be. White and his cinematographer Ben Kutchins decided to film with a yellow tint like the one filmmakers famously use to represent underdeveloped countries. It’s an odd choice, but does seem to make things feel a little more claustrophobic and works within the show’s overall feel.
Early on, the best part of the show by a mile is Armond. It’s as if Barlett is trying to play a sort of straight man version of a character Rhys Darby would normally portray. You expect him to say something entirely outrageous at some point because he’s very direct, but he’s also overwhelmingly cordial. He’s exactly what you expect a manager of a place like this to be in order to keep things running smoothly, but we know it can’t possibly last, given the aforementioned dead body. He’s perfectly equipped to deal with problems the guests pose, but it’s fun to watch him taken aback by the secret Lani is carrying.
Being just the first episode, you shouldn’t be shocked that the pacing is slow, and not much happens. It might lead some viewers to abandon it before it goes any further, but it’s trying to introduce these people so that you’ll have some interest when events start to unfold. More importantly, it gives you some ammunition towards trying to figure out who isn’t making it off the island alive and why.
Starting with Shane’s wife Rachel (Alexandra Daddario, Baywatch) though, she seems to be one of the few beacons of normalcy. While the love story she tells inquiring teens Olivia (Sydney Sweeney, Euphoria) and Paula (Brittany O’Grady, Star) doesn’t seem completely ideal, she appears to be sweet and easygoing. It’s apparent that she doesn’t come from money like the rest of the guests, and the episode does a good job of setting her up as someone you empathize with. The same can’t be said for Shane, who would rather quibble over their room than enjoy his honeymoon.
The only characters that you despise more than him early on are Olivia and Paula. Olivia is the daughter of business mogul Nicole (Connie Britton, 9-1-1) and Mark (Steve Zahn, War for the Planet of the Apes), and Paula is her friend that she brought along for the trip. They are malicious, snobbish, and generally everything you would hope your daughter wouldn’t be. They also are clearly insecure, which is apparent in the way they treat Rachel before their tone quickly switches to jealousy after seeing how attractive she is.
In a series that’s destined to be full of big reveals, perhaps none will match the size of Zahn’s character’s testicles. A bit of a shocking sentence, it’s true, but if you aren’t expecting to get up close and personal with male genitalia in episode one, it’s good to have the heads up going in that most people don’t. He’s convinced the swelling is cancer and is nervously awaiting a phone call from his doctor with some test results. You can certainly feel a bit of empathy for him, as he tries his best to distract himself from worry and spend time with his son Quinn (Fred Hechinger, Fear Street Part One: 1994), who otherwise seems content to spend the vacation on his phone. Can’t blame him for wanting to avoid his sister.
The wild-card out of this group, and current leader for overall peculiarity, is Tanya (Jennifer Coolidge, Legally Blonde), who made the trip alone, other than being accompanied by her mother’s ashes. She seems sad, as expected, very loopy, and really needs a massage. When Belinda does her best to accommodate Tanya, Tanya uncomfortably attaches herself to Belinda. If that obsession grows, it’s going to get cringeworthy fast.
Viewers looking for something that’s going to be more assertively comedic or fast-paced are going to be frustrated, at least early on. There is potential for things to ramp up now that we seem to have a grasp of who our characters are, but it appears that White is happy to slowly reveal things in a more subtle way. Whether it all eventually adds up into something that is clever and entertaining remains to be seen. For now, you just have to let the disgust and mortification wash over you.
