Breathtaking sets, luxurious locations, five-star resorts, characters with dizzying outfits, hidden stories, secrets and murders. But what are we talking about? The US series created and scripted by Mike White (you will certainly have heard of him with Dawson's Creek) with the aim of dismantling the myth of white Trumpian America with sarcasm.
The White Lotus, is the title of the series that presents itself as a dramatic and satirical comedy that takes us for a week inside luxury resorts in Hawaii and Sicily.
The series portrays the lives of staff members who have to satisfy the demands of wealthy clients every day, in parallel with that of a group of guests who have arrived to spend a week's holiday.
The relaxation, the dreamlike landscapes, the luxury and the endless possibilities of entertainment, slowly bring to light more hidden sides of the different characters. Each episode focuses on the story of one of the characters: the first guest to come into focus is Shane Patton.
Thanks to a flashback, we also meet other guests such as Rachel, Shane's wife. Together with them also Jennifer Coolidge who has arrived to scatter her mother's ashes and the Mossbacher family with their daughter's friend in tow. It is they who will animate the six episodes of the series.
The plot is very intricate, gripping and exciting: it will keep you glued to the screen.
We won't spoil the finale of the first season, but we do anticipate that in the second we move from the paradisiacal Hawaii to the breathtaking beauty of Sicily.
But why are we telling you about it? For three main reasons:
1. To let you discover the beauty of Sicily. In fact, we believe that the frames of the second series are a beautiful advertisement for a region that has so much to offer: from culture to culinary art, not to mention the splendid villas for rent where you can spend your holidays (we are obviously talking about ours).
2. For the exceptional performances. Each actor is in full and fluid command of their role, everyone seems to enjoy the flow of White's writing, the way he delicately plucks the strings to change the tenor and vibration of his characters' social dynamics. They seem to be having fun, even when pain and anxiety creep in at the edges of a scene.
3. For the message that the series wants to convey: a contemporary realistic fairy tale, in which different ages, different personalities meet and collide amid disappointments and disillusionments, in the continuous merry-go-round that is life in which apparently no one seems to want to take responsibility for what happens. The strength of The White Lotus lies in its desire to show human frailties, to mock wealth but without giving the contours of sanctity to those who are not rich.
