Rental Family
Director: Hikari
Writer: Hikari, Stephen Blahut
Cast: Brendan Fraser, Takehiro Hira, Mari Yamamoto, Shannon Mahina Gorman, Akira Emoto, Tamae Andô
Seen on: 7.2.2026

Plot:
Many years ago, Phillip (Brendan Fraser) came to Japan to start his career as an actor after a very successful commercial. But his career stalled and Phillip is maybe a little stuck now. When his agent tells him that there is an impromptu job for him as „Sad American“, he can’t pass the opportunity up. Then he realizes that he is not actually acting in a movie, but some kind of real world intervention. And organizer Tada (Takehiro Hira) would like to continue working with Phillip.

Rental Family is a really sweet film with a nice sense of humor and, more importantly, a good feeling for the emotions of its characters and its audience.

I don’t know if the kind of service that Tada and his group provides is something that the film made up or if it is actually something that exists in Japan, but either way, what the film beautifully shows is that it needs some kind of ethical framework (like any service provided, especially one that works with building relationships and people’s vulnerabilities.

When the movie starts we see a use case that is maybe a little strange, but everybody involved knows what is happening (everybody but Phillip, really). Later we see, though, that often the service is used to trick people, albeit often with good intentions. And that’s where things start to get very troublesome indeed – something the film not only acknowledges, but also makes the point: we all want connections, but you can only buy those to a very limited degree.

Lonely Phillip has to learn that as much as Tada and his colleagues. What they are doing is not harmless, quite the opposite: it is a powerful thing, and power can be used for both good and bad. The film leads us through this thought process in a very charming way, managing to keep things surprisingly light and getting a good laugh in every once in a while.

Fraser is perfectly cast with his soulful warmth to center the film and take us on this journey. Takehiro Hira also gets some excellent moments, while Mari Yamamoto remains a little underused. While some stops of the journey may seem unavoidable and predictable, through Fraser‘s performance in particular, they are engaging and worth visiting even when we can see them coming. And the emotional pay-off is still true, making the entire film a wonderful experience.

Summarizing: lovely.