Coming in hot from The Whale and Killers of the Flower Moon, Oscar award winner Brendan Fraser stars in this wholesome comedy-drama, Rental Family, as an American actor in Tokyo who lands a perfect job with one very big catch. Balancing wisdom and whimsy, the latest from director HIKARI explores how each of us has unique roles we play in life, some with great responsibility. Even though Josh Brolin brought a thunderous performance to TIFF 2025 in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, Rental Family was the perfectly balanced film I needed to see.
Rental Family follows Philip (Fraser), who has lived in Japan for seven years. During this time, his biggest claim to fame has been a toothpaste commercial in which he’s costumed as a cross between Superman and Gumby. Everything changes when he’s recruited to play “sad American” at an actual funeral. Thus begins Philip’s tenure with a company that hires actors as surrogates to help clients through some of life’s biggest challenges.
Through Philip’s surrogate roles, we become intimately immersed in a web of intriguing characters and lives across the city of Tokyo. We also grow to know the inner workings of the agency and the people who run it. On the surface, surrogate work seems to benefit all involved, but unexpected complexities soon set in, and Philip finds himself intricately entangled. Through much trial and error, Philip is forced to face inwards when he realizes that the role of a lifetime is being himself.
There is something about Japanese film and TV techniques that always leaves me appalled, how they make everything on film look crystal clear—the same could be said for Rental Family. The b-roll cinematography captured every location across Japan in this movie with successfully stunning execution. From capturing the hustle and bustle of everyday lives to presenting the beautiful countryside, these Japanese locations have never looked more beautiful than this. HIKARI’s choice to also capture the Japanese workers’ hardships and Philip’s relentless struggles at the beginning of this film made me feel that burden through the screen.
A great drama-comedy/dramedy strikes a balance between making its audiences cry or get angry, while equally making its audiences laugh. Rental Family easily did this for me, never leaning too far into the comedy nor being too serious. The opening fake funeral scene set the tone of the whole movie splendidly, seeing Fraser’s face go from WTF to understanding the assignment was golden.
Fraser delivered a heartwarming mix of awkwardness and golden retriever vibes to the role of Philip. There is no actor Fraser could not look horrible interacting with, whether it is adults or kids. He interacted with a wide range of ages and Japanese actors, showcasing how Philip caters to each job he is rented out to. Fraser’s worried and pouty face was too adorable, which allowed me to easily sympathize with him when Philip genuinely wants to help as many people as he can.
“Rental Family is the perfect feel-good movie of the year for me, bringing tear-jerking and heartwarming feelings to my soul.”
Rental Family’s overall themes screamed the core essence of the anime, Rent-A-Girlfriend. Both this movie and that anime emphasized how their human rental services helped make other people’s lives better somehow. I appreciated the thought of each of Philip’s rental jobs because numerous ones highlighted societal pressures and stigmatizations that are still not accepted in Japan, compared to the Western world. The movie covered major topics specific to Japanese society, like illegal same-sex marriage, the lack of mental illness resources, and female single-parenting social barriers.
This movie’s score bounced nicely against the most poignant emotional beats because the woodwind family of instruments sounded playful and childlike. I took this as HIKARI did not want audiences to feel too sombre when watching sad scenes in Rental Family. There were numerous occasions where the score filled up inaudible moments where Philip was simply observing and appreciating the intricacies of different people’s lives through his apartment window. I felt this, as I also participate in the act of people-watching.
Rental Family is the perfect feel-good movie of the year for me, bringing tear-jerking and heartwarming feelings to my soul. Fraser’s chemistry with each cast member looked infectiously joyful, and matched the movie’s positive energy. The overall lightheartedness will warm your aching soul, one rental moment at a time. If you are down in the dumps and life just keeps knocking you down, this is a must-watch that will turn the droopiest frowns upside down.
