Should professional matchmaker Lucy marry the rich, charming prince who is swooning after her? Or should she follow her heart and go back to the poor, starving-artist ex-boyfriend she really loves? That’s the central crux of Materialists, which star Dakota Johnson personally introduced at this year’s Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and heads into cinemas across the Czech Republic from Aug. 14.
Materialists covers some similar thematic territory as director Celine Song‘s previous film, the wonderful Past Lives, but in a much more simplistic, and far less emotionally resonant, fashion. The result is an appealing Hollywood romance thanks to the filmmaker’s craft and a trio of engaging central performances, but something of a disappointment coming on the heels of her previous film.
Johnson stars as Lucy, who converts her clients to data points in order to find the perfect matches: age, race, height, weight, wealth. At the beginning of the film, she finds herself at the wedding of a couple she put together, the height of success for a matchmaker. There, she meets Harry (Pedro Pascal), the brother of the groom: handsome, charming, obscenely wealthy… he’d make a great match for one of her clients.
But Harry doesn’t want one of Lucy’s clients: he wants her, and despite some initial reluctance, his attempts to woo her eventually find some success. At the same wedding, however, Lucy also runs into someone else: John (Chris Evans), one of the caterers, who happens to be her ex-boyfriend. He’s also handsome and charming—he’s played by Chris Evans, after all—but he’s also *shock, horror* poor. Eww.
But despite breaking up with John because he didn’t want to pay for parking in downtown Manhattan—most of us can relate—it’s painfully clear that Lucy is still in love with him. It’s a testament to Johnson’s work here—perhaps her best work to date—that we gain so much information about her character from how she interacts with these two suitors; a lot of what would be said through dialogue in the usual rom-com is explicitly inferred through her nuanced character work alone.
You might think, well, duh, of course Lucy should follow her heart. But should she really? Harry seems like a genuinely nice guy, and comes without all the baggage of Chris. Kudos to Song’s script, which resists all urges to turn him into the kind of character that would allow the story to resolve itself without any moral dilemma.
But the great thing about Past Lives is that while it acknowledged the feelings between its characters, it kept things completely on the level: it wasn’t a Hollywood romance that sought to provide a fairy tale ending. Materialists, meanwhile, tries to have things both ways, resulting in a narrative that is satisfying on some levels, but frustrating on others.
To go along with some of the frustrations: a lengthy subplot involving Lucy’s matchmaking efforts, and a mistake involving one client (Zoe Winters) that results in sexual assault. This material is thoughtfully acknowledged, but never satisfyingly resolved. And Materialists gets unreasonably preachy when Lucy has a crisis of conscience involving her work, and her client’s seemingly superficial requirements; surely, we’re allowed to have some preferences when it comes to our romantic partners.
Despite its uneven storytelling, Materialists shines throughout thanks to Shabier Kirchner’s elegant cinematography, which makes contemporary New York look luminous, and Daniel Pemberton’s understated score that nicely complements the film’s emotional undercurrents without overwhelming them.
Director Song again proves her gift for capturing small, intimate moments, delivering a romance that feels grounded even when wrapped in glossy Hollywood packaging. With Johnson, Evans, and Pascal anchoring the drama, the film balances its indie sensibilities with star-driven appeal. It may not reach the quiet brilliance of Past Lives, but Materialists is proof that even a glossy Hollywood romance can have some genuine heart.
