Despite so many people having problems with Materialists, Celine Song’s anti-romantic comedy about a New York matchmaker trying to find love in the Big Apple, I’ve always stood by it. So, when I remembered that one of my favorite releases from the 2025 movie schedule was streaming with an HBO Max subscription, I decided to give it another watch. No surprise here, but I loved it just as much the second time around.
One of my favorite things about revisiting a movie is that I can catch moments or lines I might have missed the first time around. In the case of Materialists, it was a single line near the end of the movie where Chris Evans’ John opens up to Lucy in a way that has me thinking a whole lot about my own life.
The Scene Where John Talks About Knowing Why He And Lucy Wouldn’t Work Just Kills Me
To be honest with you all, I forgot about the scene near the end of Materialists where John and Lucy have an intense conversation after crashing some random wedding. What starts as a fun getaway and rekindling of a flame long believed to have gone out turns into a heartbreaking revelation where the struggling actor admits that he thinks he’s not good enough for her lifestyle or her desires in life.
Despite still being madly in love with Lucy, even after all these years and the terrible way they broke up, John admitting that he doesn’t think they could work out is utterly heartbreaking. Going from talking about seeing wrinkles, grey hair, and children that look like her, whenever he pictures Lucy, to admitting money will always be a problem just killed me in every way imaginable.
However, there’s a single line following that moment that got me thinking even more…
The Line Where He Talks About Imposter Syndrome Is Especially Relatable
After pretty much telling Lucy that he’s always loved her and always will, no matter what, John says a line that’s been sticking with me ever since revisiting the movie, particularly because it’s just so damn relatable. After calling himself a beggar for his ex, the theater actor and cater waiter touches on imposter syndrome and says why she shouldn’t be with him in the most honest yet heartbreaking way:
But as your friend... I would tell you it's a bad idea to be with a 37-year-old cater waiter who still has roommates. I would say... you definitely shouldn't marry a guy that has $2,000 in his bank account in a city he can't afford, who's only still there to keep trying to be a theater actor because someone told him he was good at it once. So, where does that leave us? Here. At someone else's wedding. I can't give you the wedding or the marriage you want. I couldn't even give you the relationship you wanted. It's been years, and I still can't afford to be with you.
As someone who’s battled imposter syndrome for years, the whole “because someone told him he was good at it once” line at the end of the scene resonated so much. There are times when I feel as if I have nothing to say and no talent, and that the only reason I’ve followed this path is that a teacher liked a poem I wrote about Edward Hopper’s “Nighthawks” back in high school.
I know these are intrusive thoughts that everyone deals with from time to time, but seeing them in a movie (with the guy who played Captain America saying them) was just something that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about.
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