Sometimes, the Emmys can be good for something. For example, I knew of this miniseries for a while (mainly due to Alexandra Daddario and Sydney Sweeney‘s involvement and being on Reddit, you couldn’t escape some pictures or gifs being posted regularly), yet it wasn’t until the show won 10 (!) Emmys, I finally decided to watch it. And I am so glad I did. The White Lotus might seem like a “rich white people have issues too” type of show, but it’s so much more. That is how I would sum up this show – everything is more nuanced than it appears on the surface.
Take it from the premise – within the first minutes, it’s established somebody died in this tropical resort, but we are never told who until the last episode. Naturally, you might think this might turn into a sort of “whodunit” or who will it be, but it never does. Because once this show introduces all our main characters and starts “plotting away”, you are hooked and might even forget that at the end, somebody will die. As that death never “lingers” over this show.
What The White Lotus is interested in; is exploring characters from different social and economic backgrounds but giving them all the “benefit of the doubt”. And the show does it well. You might think you have every character figured out by the end of the first episode, but you would be mistaken as each one grows episode by episode, some for better, some for worse. Take Jake Lacy‘s character (Shane). I was convinced he was the most unpleasant person in that show based on the first episode. And he is definitely a spoiled, entitled male version of Karen. But the main conflict his character has throughout this show (against Murray Bartlett‘s character Armond) isn’t because of him being all those things I just said; it’s because of Armond’s character being cheeky and trying to get away with it. If you watched the show, you know what I am talking about.
Now, does that justify Shane’s behaviour towards his new wife, Rachel (played by Daddario)? Absolutely not. And he’s got many issues on top of that (like the fact he might be too attached to his mum), but ultimately you can kind of understand his motivation and his traits because that character is written and portrayed well. Same for Alexandra’s character Rachel where you can argue she jumped into this wedding bit too quickly, not knowing what she was doing because her character starts to see who she married on their honeymoon. But when she has a choice to leave and do something about it, does she? I won’t spoil it, but let’s just say nobody is “black or white” here. Every single character has their flaws displayed and explored. That brings me to Fred Hechinger, aka Quinn.
His character goes through the most growth; out of all characters we have been introduced to in this show. When we first meet Quinn, he is this beyond awkward teenager who is glued to his phone, not satisfied/happy with anything. He also has a wealthy/powerful mum behind him (Connie Britton), who keeps making excuses for him. Her dialogue about teenage white men having it difficult in today’s world was interesting, to say the least, so you can draw some comparisons between his character and Shane. One could even say; if certain events didn’t happen the way they did, Quinn would have ended up like Shane’s character in 20 years. Instead, I don’t think he will, as he finds something we all crave without realising – the sense of community, belonging and hopefully, purpose. Again, I don’t want to spoil it, but his journey was satisfying to watch, and towards the end, you root for him.
We can also talk about his sister (portrayed by Sydney) and her relationship with her best friend, who is tagging along with Sydney’s wealthy family (played by Brittany O’Grady). Both of them stand for good things; they stand on the right side regarding all the issues, and don’t worry, they will tell you about it. But Sydney’s character does it from the place of hypocrisy and comfort (as highlighted by her dad, played by Steve Zahn), and Brittany’s character is the personification of the proverb “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” Her ultimate goal is noble, but in order to achieve that goal, her character makes some straight-up evil choices. And yet, you understand her even though you don’t have to agree with what she did.
And that is where the brilliance lies for me. I could pretty much go through each of our ten main characters and write about each in a good chunk of text because I understand them. And the reason I understand them is that they all feel like people, not characters on paper. They all have good and bad qualities, but most importantly, they all have flaws, some bigger than others, and the show doesn’t judge them. The White Lotus makes sure you get to know them, you understand them and then it’s all up to you to decide who is the “real villain” is. Maybe there isn’t one, as we are all the heroes of our own stories and villains in some other stories. I once heard something along the lines of: “We judge everyone based on their action, but we judge ourselves based on our intentions.” And whilst watching this show, that line kept ringing in my head.
I wonder how the second season will square against this one. From the original cast, the only one returning is Jennifer Coolidge (who deserved that Emmy, she was brilliant in her role), but we will get a new resort with new people. It will be hard to top this season, but I am hopeful because I can see the potential. And I am also down for more Jennifer in this kind of role; she ruled both comedically and dramatically.
Overall, The White Lotus is so much more complex than the show lets on the surface. From looking at the promotional posters and trailers, you might think this might be a decent show full of “white people’s problems”. To an extent, it is that, but there is much more meat on the bones to chew. And that’s all due to the brilliant script and strong performances by everyone involved. I would be happy if this show only had one season, but let’s see what season two will bring. I can’t wait and won’t be waiting to check it out this time.
That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!
Until next time,
Luke
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