Movie Review - Materialists

Director: Celine Song
Genre: Romance/ Drama
Runtime: 116 minutes
Year: 2025
Starring: Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, Pedro Pascal
 
Description: A young, ambitious New York City matchmaker (Dakota Johnson) finds herself town between the perfect match (Pedro Pascal) and her imperfect ex (Chris Evans).
 
Review: With “Materialist”, director Celine Song breathes new life into the romcom genre. But don’t expect anything sugar sweet or cheesy; the romance in Song’s second film is raw and brutally honest.
Beautiful A-list actors gazing sultrily at each other, cheesy one-liners about eternal love, and passionate relationships in the heart of New York: judging by the synopsis and the trailer for “Materialists” moviegoers could look forward to a sweet rom-com. But it’s nothing like that. And that’s why I, a movie lover that is not the biggest fan of romcoms, loved “Materialists” so much more then I expected to. And it’s one of my favorite movies of 2025 so far.

Romantically inclined viewers would do well to adjust their expectations somewhat, because “Materialists” will not have you swooning or laughing out loud. Not that there isn’t any flirting or passionate longing in Song’s film, but she is more concerned with the psychology behind love than with its romantic portrayal. The main characters’ reflections are at the forefront.

The film follows Lucy, a highly successful professional matchmaker with nine marriages on her credit. For her, love is a matter of supply and demand: you “market value” is determined by your appearance, your income, and other material things. Lucy scours New York, pairing one perfect match after another.
Her own love life is less successful; her friends teasingly call her the eternal bachelorette. But then she meets the charming harry, who on paper is her perfect match. Lucy makes no secret of the fact that she wants to marry a rich man, and with Harry, she doesn’t have to worry about money. Ans besides his exorbitantly expensive apartment, designer clothes, and preference for high-quality restaurants, Harry also has good manners, is eloquent, and smart. Perfect, right?

When her ex John suddenly reappears in her life, Lucy begins to have doubts. This penniless, aspiring actor may not have money, but to Lucy he is a soulmate who really listens to her, is always there for her, and effortlessly makes her laugh.

It sounds like the classic premise for a lighthearted romcom, but in Song’s hands it becomes a very honest reflection of modern love. “Materialists” is emotionally charged and manages to get a grip on the deepest emotions of its characters. I went to see this movie, mainly for the amazing cast, expecting a solid romcom that I was going to enjoy just fine. But I got a completely different film, that totally surprised me, with a cast so strong and such an emotional load, and romance on a much deeper level. In my eyes, it’s definitely not a romcom, which is a good thing. Fans of the romcom genre might be disappointed, but as a non-romcom girlie I absolutely loved “Materialists”.

Rating: 5/ 5