Review: The White Lotus, “Italian Dream” | Season 2, Episode 2
Subtext rules in a light-on-action but heavy-on-tension follow-up
Why do we go on vacation? Above all else, the fittingly titled “Italian Dream” is concerned with that question. What fantasies are these people pursuing by coming to an idyllic place like Sicily? At this point, it’s easier to answer for some characters than others; for every straightforward fantasy like Tanya’s Italian dream of “being really chic and happy,” there are deeper desires lurking beneath the surface, just waiting to be uncovered. The foreboding opening underwater shot emphasizes that feeling; it cuts eventually to water crashing over rocks, like the inevitable explosion of violence that awaits us at the end of this season.