Past Lives doesn't pack any surprises in its storytelling but there's a kind of melancholic poetry to its visual language that I haven't seen since the 'Before' Trilogy. Quite a strong debut for its director Celine Song.
If anything (and these are minor gripes), attempts at subverting the trope of 'star-crossed lovers' by adding metacommentary on (cultural) identity come over a bit forced, and the all around beautiful performances by the two Korean leads are occasionally held back by the stiffness of their American counterpart.
UPDATE (2025): After watching Materialists, I think the minor gripes were actually symptoms of a deeper, fundamental misunderstanding of human relationships, class structures, and basic human motivations.