As an actor, Brendan Fraser is a contradiction—this large man looks like he can barely handle his loneliness much less his height and weight. Yet, as he showed in his Oscar-winning The Whale, his loneliness resonates with all of us, big and small.
In the pleasant drama, Rental Family, he plays an ex-pat actor, Phillip, trying to revive his career by seeking work in Tokyo. Not as easy as it seems, for hiring out, for instance, as a bereaving American at a funeral proves he has much to learn about the authenticity of those at the wake, many of them having been hired, even the corpse.He has found work as part of the titular Rental Family.
While the job may seem surface and even heartless, a sensitive actor like Phillip can’t help but connect with the needy families, to the extent he may endanger his employer and even the families. However, the more he interacts with them, the more he satisfies their need to connect with a stranger who brings them unity and charity and he with second families fulfilling their need for resolution of current problems to be alleviated by his unique bonding talent.
Co-writer/director, Hikari, deftly navigates between the players to make even disparate situations seem to connect, largely due to the universal sympathy they all evoke. Shannon Mahina and Akira Emoto are also exceptional as Mia and Kiko, respectively. For instance, young Mia (Shannon Mahina) accepts Phillipe as her absent dad, nurturing their union until he must deal with his imposter pose yet accept his loving humanity despite the lie.
The cliched, even sometimes, maudlin Rental Family is neutralized by the entire cast’s good cheer, as if they understood the human need for connection regardless of the circumstance. The major good will comes from Fraser’s ability to evoke empathy. You may not need to rent your own surrogate—you’ll find the real you in LA or Tokyo, and find it you will in Rental Family.
Rental Family
Director:Hikari (37 Seconds)
Screenplay: Hikari, Stephen Blahut
Cast:Brendan Fraser (The Whale)
Rating: PG-13
Length: 1h 50m
John DeSando, a Los Angeles Press Club first-place winner for National Entertainment Journalism, hosts NPR’s It’s Movie Time and Cinema Classics as well as podcasts Back Talk and Double Take (recently listed by Feedspot as two of the ten best NPR Movie Podcasts) out of WCBE 90.5 FM, Columbus, Ohio.Contact him at JohnDeSando52@gmail.com