Director: Celine Song
Writer: Celine Song
Cast: Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, Pedro Pascal

Dating can be rough, especially the older one gets, even more so in this day and age where socialising is dipping. Thus, it’s no surprise more and more people turn to services for help, whether they be apps or in-person matchmaking. There are many films that delve into the depths of the dating pool and the sharks within, but not many really focus on the thought and meaning behind finding a life partner in this modern world. Enter, Celine Song. With but one other film credit to her writing/directing name, 2023’s incredible Past Lives, can Song capture the same emotional range, story strength and insightful dialogue pertaining to romantic relationships that she has previously, or are we looking at a one-hit-wonder?

Lucy (Johnson) is a successful matchmaker in New York City, yet she is a love cynic herself, wishing only to marry rich. Lucy bumps into her ex-boyfriend, struggling actor John (Evans), at a wedding in which he is part of the catering team. In the same night, she meets the wealthy Harry (Pascal), who she is keen to sign up to her dating services. Instead, Harry pursues Lucy, believing her to be the right woman for him in spite of their economic differences and opposing backgrounds. Lucy soon finds herself caught between John, with his broke existence but unconditional love for her, and Harry, with his expensive apartment and luxurious holidays.

On the surface, this film could have been any old average romantic film with little to no substance behind it, but Song takes the tropes and turns them on their heads to empty out some real heart and emotion, something she had already proven capable of in Past Lives. Song explores the reasoning behind our choices of partner, specifically those who have convinced themselves they deserve only the best (and that comes with a checklist) and those who have more or less given up on the romantic aspect of love and instead follow the logical, then continues through to the inevitable conclusions. It’s possible that some of the characters come across as too aware of their actions and emotions in an unrealistic way (most of us don’t really think too deeply about why we act or feel the way we do), however it works in the context of the film so we can understand the development of the characters and even understand ourselves better through Song’s analysis. Doing this through the framework of a matchmaker was an excellent idea; who else could see all the light and dark sides of romance? Truly, Song goes quite dark in one aspect of the film, too. It’s also a wonderful exposition piece about how love generally doesn’t fulfil all requirements, and it’s not always going to look how you think. No money? No problem, we can figure that out, as long as we have genuine love, care and support for each other, as long as we’re willing to compromise and make some sacrifices. Rich but in a loveless relationship? Maybe it works for some, but not for most.

Although Song has shown great aptitude to write in depth about relationships, where Materialists differs from Past Lives mostly is the inner dialogue we are openly privy to. The characters in Materialists essentially wear their hearts on their sleeves (very American) and are vocal about what they feel, whereas the characters in Past Lives find meaning in silence and gestures (very Asian, in my experience of living in an Asian country and meeting people of Asian descent). I suppose that says a lot about Song’s straddling of two worlds, as a Korean growing up in Canada and seeing first-hand North American personalities. However, Song’s directing follows a similar style in Materialists, where the surroundings have a meaning to the characters, the actors almost like negative space within the frame at times, giving the audience a chance to understand what’s going on around the characters and how it relates to them. This may not have been Song’s intent, but it presents an alternate way of understanding the characters’ situations, particularly the differences between John’s and Harry’s and the way they relate to Lucy.

Materialists gives each of its three lead actors some real substance to chow down on, which is a refreshing change of pace, especially for Evans and Pascal who have mostly been on the world stage for action-based roles. Johnson is a wonderful lead in Lucy and showcases more of her capabilities than we may have seen before, none more so than her emotional range. Evans puts away his usual leading man presence and instead gives a performance that is relatable and bolsters Johnson’s lead in their scenes, a great supporting role that does everything it needs to do. Pascal on the other hand tends to overshadow Johnson in their scenes, however it makes for a clear reflection of the feelings that Lucy has towards Harry, in that he does overshadow her, in many ways, making her feel less worthy of him. Pascal also brings an openness and sincerity to Harry that doesn’t usually come with a character such as the wealthy Harry. Johnson’s chemistry with both Evans and Pascal makes for a solid and believable love triangle.

While we don’t want a filmmaker to become predictable and stuck in their ways, Song’s ability to understand people, particularly romantic relationships between men and women, is a breath of fresh air in a stagnant genre and something we desperately need more of. Materialists has an incredible depth and will cut some people right to the core. While watching it in the cinema, I, a woman in my mid-thirties, truly felt like I was being called out and put on show for all to see, vulnerable and exposed, but it also felt amazing that someone finally put to film an understanding of what it’s like to navigate relationships at my age and at this time in history, much like filmmakers such as Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers have done in the past during their time. I will continue to follow Song’s filmmaking with enthusiasm, anticipation and anxiety over how she’s going to affect me next.