Having missed writer/director Celine Song’s latest romance in theaters, I remained hopeful that I would fall in love with A24’s Materialists from the comfort of my own home. Two of the trio of main cast members have done their fair share of genre fare: Dakota Johnson led the trilogy of Fifty Shades movies; Chris Evans has a bevy of rom-coms from What’s Your Number to Playing It Cool under his belt; for Pedro Pascal, a schmaltzy romance marks new territory. Those expecting the romantic drama to be dipped in dark humor may walk away frustrated—Song’s Materialists contains some excellent messaging, yet strictly focuses on deconstructing the meaning of love within relationships, forgoing the humor completely. That will work better playing against the right audience, whilst others may bore of its calculated tone. For this viewer, Materialists ends as a beautiful, if flawed, take on love versus money. Though lacking the strength of a great love triangle, it still manages enough goodwill from the cast chemistry to leave a mark.
Lucy (Johnson) works as a professional matchmaker at Adore Matchmaking, priding herself on pairing clients by strict criteria. She crosses paths with Harry (Pascal), a wealthy private equity executive, at a wedding, and the two spark a connection of curiosities. On paper, Harry seems to be a dream client—successful, polished, and checking every box in the perfect partner playbook. At the same time, Lucy reconnects with John (Evans), her working-class ex, whose financial struggles and modest lifestyle have always clashed with Lucy’s hunger for doing expensive things.
As Lucy pursues Harry, his status-based world becomes all the more alluring. Be it his twelve-million-dollar apartment or Harry’s surprising vulnerability, a connection forms even as John’s heart-eyed yearning lingers. Cracks form when a client accuses Lucy’s company of facilitating a dangerous match, causing her to spiral with guilt. Ethically speaking, does her work even matter? John re-enters her life with unwavering sincerity, offering her a love grounded in promised devotion rather than infinite wealth. Torn between the potential stability of Harry’s wealth and John’s adoration, Lucy faces the ultimate choice: prioritize money and status, or embrace love in its purest form, flaws and all.
The story probably would have been far more interesting with a greater emphasis on the love triangle element, perhaps playing the two men against one another. Song avoids the tropes expected of the subgenre by refusing to fall into that trap, for better and for worse. As it stands though, Materialists goes for a more tender vibe. A caveman framing device gives the story a playful bookend, reminding us that while status and money may appear alluring, the human need for connection is timeless. Unconventional and adorably cute at its core, Materialists strips away love’s value down to its very essence. The impact will be felt most seriously on those in the current dating scene; perhaps as a jaded married man who has not dated in over a decade, it failed to hit me as hard as expected.
Special features on the home video release include a feature-length commentary from Celine Song, a sixteen-minute featurette aptly titled “The Math of Modern Love,” and a deep-dive with Japanese Breakfast over the song they made for Materialists. The most interesting tidbit here was learning about Celine Song having once worked as a matchmaker, channeling her experiences into the surprising nuances of the script. There’s a rareness to finding love, and Celine and her cast recognize its difficulties. The commentary track will speak personally to movie obsessives. As is typical with these A24 releases, movie-lovers will obsess over these supplementals whether the film at play personally spoke to them or not.
Become one of the Materialists, now on Blu-Ray from A24 Films.
