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CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION | ||
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Positive:
114
Mixed:
8
Negative:
3
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Critic Reviews
The TimesAug 18, 2021
Season 1 Review:
If you watched episode one of The White Lotus and thought, "Yes, quite good, but I'm not feeling the five-star ravings I've heard about it," then I say this: keep the faith and rest assured that it gets stonkingly good very soon. I have watched all six and, trust me, you're in for a treat.
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Sep 4, 2025
Jul 1, 2021
Oct 24, 2022
Season 2 Review:
There are so many elements about this season that make it better than the majority of shows on TV right now — not limited to the writing and the acting, but the sweeping cinematography and pitch-perfect soundtrack as well (the new theme song might actually be better than the original) — but when you know how good The White Lotus can be, why would you want to accept anything less?
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Jun 30, 2021
Season 1 Review:
Some of the year's best television thus far. ... White has a deft way of interweaving storylines so they never feel contrived, and he gives everyone who appears multiple moments of first-rate comedy. The roving camerawork (by Ozark cinematographer Ben Kutchins) and tribal score (by Hunters composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer) contribute to the show's polish.
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TV Guide MagazineFeb 27, 2025
Season 3 Review:
The resort welcomes another memorably stellar ensemble. [3 - 23 Mar 2025, p.4]
TV Guide MagazineJul 1, 2021
Season 1 Review:
A fitfully diverting and gorgeously filmed six-part limited series. [5- 18 Jul 2021, p.8]
Oct 24, 2022
Season 2 Review:
Last year's six episodes were near flawless television, and returning ran the risk of losing the expectations game. But the new seven-episode season is comparable, and most importantly keeps the tone alive. If more sophomore seasons could learn from the "Lotus" example, television would be better for it.
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Jul 9, 2021
Season 1 Review:
For fans of White's deathly sharp comedy, "Lotus" is a triumphant, deliriously funny satire of the privileged classes against a gorgeous backdrop. For those who don't know White well, it's an exuberant comedy that might introduce them to his other work, such as Laura Dern's HBO vehicle "Enlightened."
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Oct 25, 2022
Season 2 Review:
The Sicily season is a bit thinner, focused mostly on sex and the grittier aspects of romance, with only some slight, and occasionally perfunctory, nods toward the grander sociopolitical storm of the present day. At least, that’s true of the first two episodes. As it moves past those beginnings, the season adds layers of tension and meaning, potentially setting us up for a wallop of a finale that says some pretty grave things about the haves and the have nots, about men and women, about money and its influence. One just has to be patient, I suppose.
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Jul 9, 2021
Season 1 Review:
It’s a lot of people to keep track of, yet White’s writing and direction intertwine their stories in an ambitious, novelistic manner. There’s the morbid fun of trying to guess who dies and how, as well as the subtler work of understanding these characters, none of whose behaviors are easy to predict.
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Feb 11, 2025
Season 3 Review:
White is simply too gifted a dramatist, and too acute an observer of human foibles, for these concerns to feel forced. They do, however, take a long time to set up, especially as the ensemble expands in size. Season 3 is the least immediately gripping entry. .... But when the story coalesces and kicks into gear somewhere around its halfway point, it’s as wild and unpredictable as any of the powder kegs White has combusted.
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Oct 24, 2022
Season 2 Review:
Between the acting, Alex Bovaird’s costuming and White’s usual written standards — as seen on this series, “Enlightened” and beyond — each “White Lotus” character is immediately distinct from the next. Spending time with them is never boring, which is maybe why the season takes its time setting up the players, indulging White’s gift for dialogue to the point that the first few episodes (each a solid hour long) lose some of their urgency. ... “The White Lotus” remains one of TV’s most purely visceral, evocative shows as it digs each of its guests up by their roots.
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Jul 1, 2021
Season 1 Review:
As its characters circle the collective emotional drain, however, the show builds an undeniably hypnotizing whodunit with no ready conclusions. ... The entire cast pulls its weight, but “The White Lotus” leaps into a whole other gear when centering its two smartest performances. ... Bartlett and Coolidge are exceptional as they embrace every twisted knot of conflict inherent in their roles. As Armand’s and Tanya’s behavior reaches manic heights, the performances grounding them become ever more mesmerizing.
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Feb 14, 2025
Season 3 Review:
I don’t know that I wanted a healthier, kinder, more virtuous “White Lotus.” The new season is slow. It’s not nearly as sharp at picking apart contrarian impulses among wealthy tourists — or at articulating the malaise of the present moment. But it has moments of leisurely, contemplative beauty that remind me a great deal of “Enlightenment,” White’s earlier series for HBO.
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Oct 28, 2022
Season 2 Review:
For some viewers, this all might feel like a slight rehash, idiosyncratic as it might be. But though these new episodes (of which five were made available to critics) meander at times, Season 2 is more tightly plotted and there are enough new ideas, with even the most staid insights heightened by White’s razor-sharp writing, for it to feel fresh.
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Jul 9, 2021
Season 1 Review:
There’s plenty here of White’s tart sensibility, queer boundary-pushing and serrated observations of how self-loathers tend to spread their wretchedness to those around them. The trollish timing of the show’s premise, that vacations are wasted on those who least need it, certainly deserves some grudging admiration. But a swerve late in the series disappointingly sails the story toward calmer waters. Once the turbulence is over, only froth remains.
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