‘Rental Family’ Is A Heartwarming, Surprisingly Engaging, Entertaining Movie

By: Philip Sayblack

​The need for connection, for human companionship, is among the most basic of human needs.  It is such a need that in Japan, there is even such thing as a “rental family” industry.  The industry actually rents out actors who pay the part of friends and relatives at social events so as to make people feel less lonely at such events.  Having started in the 1990s it has become such a lucrative industry, that there are now more than 300 rental family businesses in Japan, and now there is even a new drama starring actor Brendn Fraser (yes, an actor playing an actor) that is centered on that industry.  Having made its theatrical premiere in November 2025 through Searchlight Pictures (a division of 20th Century Studios), it started streaming last month and is set for physical release this coming Tuesday, Feb. 17 on Blu-ray/digital combo pack.  Rental Family (yes, that is actually its title) is an intriguing presentation that deserves to be watched at least once.  That is due largely to its story, which will be discussed shortly.  While the story does plenty to engage and entertain audiences it is not a perfect presentation.  Its writing and pacing do become problematic as it nears its end.  It is not enough to doom the movie but does have a notable impact on the presentation.  Knowing it is not enough to doom the presentation, there is one more positive to examine, that being the work of the movie’s cast.  When the cast’s work is considered alongside the movie’s story, the pairing makes Rental Family further proof of the importance of independent movies in an age of nothing but prequels, sequels, reboots, and movies based on books and actual events.
Rental Family, Searchlight Pictures’ new independent picture starring Brendan Fraser, is a presentation that is well worth watching at least once.  That is especially in comparison to so much of the otherwise unoriginal content that Hollywood’s major studios continue to churn out to this day.  The movie’s appeal comes in large part through its featured story.  Co-written by Stephen Blahut and director Hikari, the story centers on actor Phillip Vanderploeg (Brendan Fraser – The Whale, Dudley Do-Right, George of the Jungle The Mummy, etc.), an American living in Tokyo for the past seven years.  His biggest claim to fame is a toothpaste ad in which he played the part of a super powered toothpaste-based hero.  Since then, he has found only menial parts while auditioning for much bigger roles.  One day, Phillip is invited to work for one of the many rental family businesses in Tokyo, having no idea or real care for it at first.  However, as Phillip gets to know his “clients,” he finds himself inexplicably caring for them, perhaps too much, as he even ends up turning down a coveted acting role for a show in Korea because he becomes so attached to a young girl named Mia (played by newcomer Shannon Mahina Gorman) as he takes on the role of her father.  The result therein will not be spoiled here.  It will be left for audiences to discover for themselves.
That is not his only foible.  He also plays the part of a journalist who is interviewing elderly former actor named Kikuo Hasegawa (Akira Emoto).  As the pair gets to know each other more throughout the story, Phillip becomes so attached to Kikuo that he defies the wishes of Kikuo’s daughter and takes him back to his childhood home, a long way away.  As a result of caring so much Phillip ends up almost getting himself prosecuted and deported from Japan, if not for the help of his friends at the rental family agency. 
Meanwhile, the story goes back to Mia (again) as she discovers that Phillip was not her real father, leading to even more story involving her relationship with her mother.  This is where things start to become problematic for the overall presentation.  The movie’s run-time, not counting the end credits, is one hour 43 minutes.  At least a good 20 minutes or so of that time comes at the end as it feels like neither Blahut nor Hikari could fully figure out how to wrap up the story.  In other words, it drags on at the end with several points that could have been solid endings.  As a result, many viewers may find themselves checking their watches as the story finally nears its end more than once.  To that end, the story (and movie) is not perfect, even being worth watching.  The one negative noted here is not enough to completely doom the presentation but certainly did not help it, either.
Knowing that the writing and pacing issues that arise in the story’s final act are not enough to doom the movie, there is at least one more positive to note from the movie, that being the work of Fraser and his cast mates.  The character development that Fraser displays throughout the course of the movie is subdued and nuanced.  It is obvious when things change for him, emotionally, after Mia gives him a mobile that she made in school.  In that moment it would have been so easy for him to overact, but thankfully with his experience, he handled the moment and what came after expertly.  On the same note, his interactions with his cast mates (most notably Emoto and Gorman) allow them to fully exhibit their talents, too.  In the case of Emoto, he does such an admirable job of slowly opening up to Phillip a little more with each interaction.  At first, he is tentative about letting Phillip interview him, not even questioning Phillip’s real identity.  But as the duo’s friendship grows, audiences slowly see more vulnerability from Kikuo, to the point that Kikuo finally indirectly admits that he knows he is developing dementia and just wants to go home one last time before he dies.  Why he wants to return home and the sequence thereof makes for one of the most bittersweet of the story’s items.  This will also be left for audiences to discover for themselves.  Emoto is to be highly commended for his work alongside Fraser.  It easily makes him such a sympathetic character.
In the case of Gorman, even being a newcomer, audiences would not know this about her if they did not watch the movie’s bonus behind the scenes featurette.  The innocence that she brings to Mia is so endearing in its own right.  That anger that she exhibits as Mia first meets Phillip (whose character in this case is named Kevin) is fully believable.  What child would not lash out after being without a parent for so many years?  The way in which she gradually opens up and her pained reaction as she discovers Phillip’s secret tugs so much at the heartstrings.  Her interaction with Phillip in the story’s finale is just as believable as she basically reintroduces herself to him.  It is another heartwarming moment that when considered along with so much else from her performance adds even more to the appeal of the acting.  When her work, that of Emoto and Fraser is considered collectively, the whole therein makes for reason enough for audiences to watch this movie.  When the acting and story are considered collectively, they make for plenty of reason for audiences to take in Rental Family at least once.  This even considering the one issue of the writing in the final act.
Rental Family, Searchlight Pictures’ new human drama starring Brendan Fraser, is a touching new offering that proves itself worth watching at least once.  That is proven in part through its story.  Yes, the story is based on something real, it is not based on actual events.  It is an original work that is full of heart and wonderful acting.  The only real negative is the writing and pacing in the story’s final act.  Each item examined is important in its own way to the whole of the movie.  All things considered they make Rental Family further proof of the place and importance of independent standalone movies in an age of otherwise forgettable movies from Hollywood’s major studios.
Rental Family is streaming now and will be available on BD/digital combo pack Tuesday through Searchlight Pictures.  More information on this and other titles from Searchlight Pictures is available at:
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