A24’s new Materialists trailer is a major throwback, and now the movie’s vibe makes perfect sense

Celine Song’s sophomore film channels the spirit of vintage rom-coms—complete with a voiceover—and redefines modern love with a nostalgic twist

Recall being captivated by a woman’s unseen struggles and emotions captured in celluloid—Celine Song’s stunning debut in 2023, Past Lives, chronicling a decades-spanning romance. Now, with Materialists, her upcoming film, it seems she wants to display a different side to her artistry.

No longer shrouded in the melancholic aura of subdued sadness, this time, she’s stepping boldly into the genre-savvy world of romantic comedy. And if the recently released trailer is anything to go by, Materialists is not simply a love tale. It seeks to make a statement, a stylistic statement.

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A love story with style, star power, and a voice from the past

What stands out is not the voice cast or selection of songs for the film, but rather the voiceover. The trailer begins with a seductive male voiceover, reminiscent of 90s movie trailers. The voice states in a theatrical tone,

"No one plays the game better than Lucy. But love isn’t part of her equation."

This chosen trailer strategy feels inconsistent yet revitalizing, delivering a more lighthearted tone to a rom-com that is often too self-serious. The trailer shows Lucy, who will be played by Dakota Johnson, celebrate her client’s engagement while also dealing with her own complicated relationships with Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans.

All of this takes place under the iconic rhythm of Madonna’s "Material Girl." As a professional matchmaker, Lucy seems to have everything figured out: love, romance, relationships… until it comes to her.

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Throwback energy meets modern romance

This trailer doesn't merely display scenes; it molds an ambience. It fully indulges in familiar stereotypes: the cliched love triangle, extravagant outings, sassy one-liners, and the age-old pursuit of discovering "the one." Yet for Celine Song, these are not simply tropes, but rather, instruments. She does not merely recycle rom-com formulas; she remixes them.

While much of the footage still recalls the film’s earlier teaser, this version clarifies the film’s focal thematic essence. In contrast to the Lucy character in the book, who is a matchmaker, in the film, she embodies the concept of modern romance. Coordinated curation mixed with pure chance. The trailer teases that what is presented as formulaic may, in fact, unravel into something far more profound.

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Is Celine Song reinventing the rom-com?

Past Lives dealt with yearning and nostalgic pondering, while Materialists seems focused on the current— the performance, irony of intersectionality anchors in a world of endless choices. Given the date of June 13, 2025, the question remains if the film will go full ‘rom-com’ or completely uproot expectations.

Materialists has certainly set the stage for themselves by repurposing an all but obsolete trailer style stitched with a designer’s nostalgia—they intend to grab our attention and turn it upside down, perhaps even inciting emotions in a way we never thought possible.