the parker posey renaissance has just begun.

The White Lotus leads off this month’s edition of what’s good in TV and movies.

We’ll be studying Parker Posey’s turn as Victoria Ratliff in The White Lotus for years to come. (Photo: Fabio Lovino/HBO)

Another month has come and gone and I still don’t quite have a full-time job (working on it!) so, yes, I’m still taking in a butt-load of movies and TV right now between doom-scrolls through my LinkedIn feed (seriously, it’s brutal on there right now).

Thankfully, though, a lot of it has been very good. The end of award season meant it was time to catch a final few of the major nominated films, and recent weeks have also brought the return of several high-profile legacy TV shows.

So what was good, what was gay, and what was (very often!) both? Read on and don’t be shy in the comments—I’d love to hear what you’ve been taking in as a distraction from the surrounding horrors of the present-day universe as well. Welcome to qtb what’s good #02, one of my monthly features available exclusively to paid subscribers.

TV/streaming

The White Lotus (Max)

How gay is it (scale of 1-10)? 9

Worth your time (scale of 1-10)? 10

When it was first announced that Parker Posey would be joining the cast of the third season of Mike White’s signature black country resort drama back in January 2024, I knew this was coming: The internet has fallen in love with our Party Girl.

Posey’s performance in this new season has everything. As a disassociated, benzo-hooked North Carolina housewife laying poolside in Thailand, Posey steals scenes with even the slightest twist of her face. But it’s her press tour promoting the performance that now has TikTok screaming “Piper, nooooo! Buddddhhismm! Tsunaaammiii!”

Of course, I’ve been admiring Posey for decades now, especially her career’s deeper cuts like Josie and the Pussycats, Adam & Steve, Party Girl (so good it’s worth saying again) and Spring Breakdown and her perfect memoir, You’re on an Airplane. Still, it does bring me joy that Gen Z fans are now discovering her anew. I hope that it leads to more high-profile projects for Posey, much like how Jennifer Coolidge’s career got a major boost from her two seasons on the show. I mean, it’s already led to a Gap commercial! Is it too soon to wish for Posey to have another season on the show (assuming her character makes it out of Thailand alive)? Maybe at a ski resort or a Great Wolf Lodge somewhere?

I also feel legally required to mention how enthused I am that Aimee Lou Wood (of Sex Education brilliance) is also getting her flowers with this current season. Whenever she’s on screen, I just can’t look away.

I’ve seen some complaints that this season is a slower burn than the previous two, but I really don’t mind. I could watch Posey, Wood, and the trio of female frenemies simply read a drink menu and be thoroughly entertained. Give it a chance!