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“Materialists”

A24 Films

Directed by Celine Song

Starring Dakota Johnson, Pedro Pascal, Chris Evans, Zoe Winters and Marin Ireland

Rated R

 

3 Stars

 

At a recent press screening for Celine Song’s new movie, “Materialists,” I was impressed by how excited the audience was to see a glossy romantic comedy with a trio of big-name movie stars. I was surrounded by a group of social media influencers, and there was a palpable buzz in the air before the movie began.

Oh, who am I trying to fool here? I was excited to see the movie as well. I’m just an old softie at heart when it comes to romantic fables like this.

But something odd happened at the midway point of this movie. The rom com elements suddenly turned into rom dram, as in serious dramatic content. It was an unexpected change, and certainly not what I was expecting from the movie.

Yet this change in tone led to a far more interesting movie. I’m not sure what the influencers thought about this, but I was impressed by how “Materialists” went from a bit of escapist entertainment to a movie with genuine thoughts on love and romance in modern life.

It was not at all what I had been expecting.

The story starts off in familiar rom com territory. Dakota Johnson plays a woman who works for a New York matchmaking service. She is very good at her job, although she is struggling to help one of her clients (Zoe Winters). Despite her expertise, her own love life could use some help—that is until she meets a rich, handsome and utterly charming man (Pedro Pascal) at a wedding.

Sparks fly, although it’s hard to tell if she’s more attracted to the man or to his multi-million-dollar apartment. Complicating matters is the issue of her ex (Chris Evans), a guy who obviously adores her, but is also broke and struggling to make something out of his life.

What’s a girl to do?

Cue that dramatic incident, which I won’t spoil here, and suddenly the giddy excitement of young love is shoved into the back seat. That tonal shift is driven home by a series of interviews where the matchmaker’s clients list out what they are looking for in a romantic partner. It’s sobering to watch them list out unrealistic qualifications that will make it impossible for them to ever find true love.

These scenes are quite funny, but also more than a little bit depressing.

They also color our leading lady’s decision about which man to choose. For the record, the two women sitting next to me did not agree with her, but I found myself thinking about the film’s resolution during my drive home. Rom coms are supposed to be light and fluffy bits of disposable entertainment. “Materialists” ends up having some impressive dramatic moments that made me ponder the film’s message.

Now, don’t get me wrong. The film still has its required happy ending, and plenty of feel-good moments that will keep the crowd happy. I also appreciate that it’s something of a love letter to New York City, especially as it’s populated with such gorgeous creatures that look like Johnson, Pascal and Evans.

I liked all of this (like I said, I can be a softie at times) but not as much as I appreciated that Song wanted to make something more than just disposable fluff. “Materialists” turns out to be something different than what I was expecting to see. It also turns out to be far better than I expected.

What a nice surprise.

 

Movie reviews by Sean, “The Movie Guy,” are published each week in The Port Arthur News and Orange Leader. Sean welcomes your comments via email at sean@seanthemovieguy.com You can get more of Sean’s reviews by subscribing to the 2 Movie Guys podcast.