Absorbing, witty love story

Director: Celine Song

Cast: Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, Pedro Pascal, Lindsey Broad, Marin Ireland, Louisa Jacobson, Dasha Nekrasova, Sawyer Spielberg, Zoe Winters

Rating (M)

Sealed with a kiss? How about a handshake? That’s how Lucy (Dakota Johnson) prefers to do business when it comes to matters of the heart, whether breaking up or making up. As a professional matchmaker, she approaches every potential connection as a deal to be made.

Celine Song’s sophomore feature draws on the writer/director’s own experience as a matchmaker, so this romance about the art of the deal is grounded in details that could only come from witnessing the trade firsthand: the outsize expectations, specific requirements, small disappointments and big crises.

Lucy is a bride whisperer but what about her own love life?

Enter Harry (Pedro Pascal), the debonair brother-in-law of one of her clients. He’s a unicorn: wealthy, handsome, a full head of hair, and most importantly, tall (according to the lists of requirements rattled off by Lucy’s clients). Lucy tries to recruit him for work, but he only has eyes for her. She hesitates.

Enter John (Chris Evans), a hunky waiter who delivers her preferred drink before she can order it. He’s Lucy’s past and the source of her romantic hangups. Soon, a love triangle is afoot.

They don’t make them like this any more, with smart, witty dialogue and relatable yet aspirational characters.

Song’s script is note-perfect, the dialogue delivered earnestly and with feeling. But on a structural level, there are a few transitions where Song pushes the dramatic stakes, and the strain shows.

These narrative wobbles, coupled with a curious, somewhat silly choice for a bookend are the imperfections on the surface of Materialists. But such is Song’s ability to craft a transporting love story that the flaws are easy to forgive. As Lucy discovers, love isn’t a problem that can be perfectly solved. Sometimes, the wrong numbers add up. — TCA.

Review by Katie Walsh