Written by: Hikari
Starring: Brendan Fraser, Takehiro Hira, Mari Yamamoto, Shannon Mahina Gorman, Akira Emoto
Rating: [4/5]
In our seminal moments of life, the individuals who matter the most to us are present, whether these particular segments come filled with joy or sorrow. It’s ultimately what makes those moments easier to cherish and/or bear. Rental Family posits what would transpire if someone could hire an actor to stand in during these moments. A strange practice but one that renders an incredibly touching and emotionally moving film.
Unable to get any traditional acting jobs in Tokyo, American actor Phillip (Brendan Fraser) receives an opportunity to work for a rental family agency where clients can hire them to stand in for a whole host of reasons. After it taking a while to sink in, Phillip finds great success with two long-term assignments where he must temporarily stand in as a father for a young girl and a journalist for an aging artist.
As crazy as a concept as it sounds for someone to hire an actor to come into their life and play a specific role, this service truly exists in Japan. It makes sense for a population that faces bouts with loneliness that we see the different assignments Phillip can take on. One includes just hanging out with a guy who’s a bit of a loner, and another involves attendance of a funeral. It presents a need individuals have in their lives, and Phillip quickly learns the power it has for the clients. On the other hand, we also learn how taking on a particular role can lead to more harm than good, which a colleague of Phillip experiences.
With Phillip as the audience surrogate, he provides us with the outside point of view for a foreign practice. Other characters explain to Phillip, and therefore the audience, about the importance of this work but also how the deception allows for integral moments for the clients to use these actors for something their culture holds them to. For example, the first major assignment for Phillip involves standing in as a groom and going through a traditional wedding. It serves as a way to deceive the bride’s parents, but we later learn she must do this because she’s secretly married to her lesbian wife and needs this wedding to at least give the appearance and can therefore then live her true life. Similarly, the main plot line involved him standing in as the long-lost father for a child because the mother knew that her applying her daughter to a particular private school would face difficulty from the admissions group, who expect a full family unit consisting of a mother and father to have a presence. Each of these circumstances displays how the cultural norms in place constrict people into a place where they must hire a stand-in to circumvent something that may feel antiquated but remains all the same.
Everything about this film’s setup and marketing makes it quite obvious the film’s attempts to serve as a crowd-pleaser and a tearjerker for audiences. Those more cynical than I would claim this film to be emotionally manipulative, but I disagree wholeheartedly. Rental Family earns every single emotional beat because it meets each of these characters where they are and presents these outstanding circumstances where these services can certainly assist. We can see exactly where this film will take each of these plot lines but it still contains some surprises that warm the heart but also provides a fair amount of comedy. Even though we can respect the practice of this work, some of it does naturally produce some humor. Especially seeing this all through the eyes of a foreigner like Phillip, we have the permission structure to laugh at some of these situations while also taking them seriously for the sake of the clients.
Brendan Fraser stars in the lead role and he does a splendid job in displaying what his character reckons with and hardships that come with it but the standouts for me were the rest of the Japanese cast. Takehiro Hira, Mari Yamamoto, and Akira Emoto were each incredible in their individual roles. Hira and Yamamoto portray Phillip’s fellow employees. Each of them do the majority of the explaining to Phillip about the way this world works, but they each have their potent moments where their acting shines bright in their portrayal. Emoto portrays the elder man Phillip acts as a journalist for and this man lays down the hammer in delivering some of the most emotionally devastating moments this entire film has to offer. They each deliver something distinct and help create this overall very strong ensemble.
If anything, Rental Family serves as a strong insight into a different culture and how they utilize a service others may find strange. However, it presents several circumstances where playing a role for someone’s life temporarily serves as a vital resource in their life. This film will aim to make you cry, but it earns every bit of it because of the lovely characters it builds and the overall beauty central to the film’s overall thesis. As heartwarming as advertised and rightfully a crowd-pleaser.
