Film Review: Rental Family

Very Average Joe
6 days ago
3 min read

Title: Rental Family

Director(s): Hikari

Screenwriter(s): Hikari & Stephen Blahut

Studio: Sight Unseen & Domo Arigato

Released: 2025

Runtime: 1h 49m

Starring: Brendan Fraser, Hira Takehiro, Yamamoto Mari, Bun Kimura, Shannon Mahina Gorman, Emoto Akira, Shinozaki Shino

Rental Family is an American-Japanese drama with moments of mild comedy but is otherwise intended to be a “warm, feel-good” film.

Phillip Vanderploeg (Brendan Fraser) is an American actor based in Tokyo. He has been living in Japan for seven years and struggles to get big roles. Through his agent, he one day gets to stand in as a “sad American” at a funeral.

This funeral is organized by a company called Rental Family that is owned and run by Tada Shinji (Hira Takehiro), who then recruits Phillip as a “token white guy” to play roles for clients. Phillip is uncomfortable with the idea but he needs work. The plot follows Phillip as he tries to do and find meaning in his job…

The film criticizes the concept of this type of role-playing but is mostly unjudging. This is expressed through Phillip’s discomfort. He suggests therapy but Shinji highlights that mental health issues are stigmatized in Japan.

Indeed, they are willfully participating in a lie on behalf of a client. In one case, Phillip is merely acting as a friend for the client—comparable to Phillip’s own use of a prostitute in the sense that all parties know what is going on—but in many cases, the “target” does not know his true identity.

Whilst Shinji thinks his business provides some emotional support, Phillip still thinks it is a lie that can cause more damage, and this is explored throughout the film.

Mia (Shannon Mahina Gorman) & Phillip Vanderploeg (Brendan Fraser)

The plot follows two longer-term roles: Kevin, the father of a half-Japanese girl, Mia (Shannon Mahina Gorman), whose mother wants him to help her get into a good school; and John, a journalist who interviews Hasegawa Kikuo (Emoto Akira), a retired actor with dementia and whose daughter wants him to feel remembered.

Both Mia and Kikuo have issues and Phillip tries to play his role, obviously getting attached enough to want to genuinely help without breaking character. He predictably gets into trouble as part of the climax and resolution.

Loneliness is obviously one of the major themes. There is the common use of wider shots of scenery, in the city and rural areas, and of characters. It avoids outright looking like an arty tourism segment of Japan—though it does make the country look beautiful—whilst at the same time conveying the sense of loneliness, not just of particular characters but of the population. Although not outright depressing, it is nonetheless real.

The other themes are life, death and dealing with baggage, which are signposted and foreshadowed by the “funeral” Phillip attended in the opening act. And, of course, related to that includes a very brief discussion of religion. Phillip is not religious, and he notes that “Japan has more gods than vending machines”.

This is not the sort of film that needs to delve into the question, but it sadly defaults to the pantheistic-like position that God is a part of everything and everyone, leading to a wishy-washy form of humanism. Although it may be using the image to emphasize the connection between individuals, the image also arguably accentuates the loneliness.

The score composed Jónsi and Alex Somers includes melancholic piano block chords as well as sparse and atmospheric electronic arrangements that are fitting to the genre. It arguably lacks subtlety at times but it is at least generally fitting.

The performances are solid. Regardless of what one thinks of the idea of a rental family, the cast is able to sell their characters as real people with real problems. The plot progresses at a steady, measured pace; the film is not short but it never drags.

The overall tone is positive and optimistic without being too lighthearted. But don’t expect too much depth either and, in any case, it thankfully does not try to be emotion porn. Although it criticizes the idea of a rental family, it does not condemn it either—it does try to be considerate because the particulars in each case do matter, and Phillip’s belief that what is true or genuine is better than a lie mostly wins out in the end.