By Joel Williams 17/10/25 at London Film Festival
Wholesome bundled into film. Life precious and we all have the power to influence our days and enjoyment of it. We all have different cultures and styles of life and yet we can appreciate the beauty in how others live and if you find something better yourself through that. Sweetness in film once again proving why the Brendan Fraser renaissance is one of the most wonderful things in Hollywood.
Brendan Fraser and Mari Yamamoto in “Rental Family” Photo Credit Searchlight Pictures
Set in modern day Tokyo, “Rental Family” tells the story of an American actor struggling to find his place in the world, take up a job with the business Rental Family who work as stand-in’s for strangers.
Directed by Hikari and stars Brendan Fraser as Phillip with a supporting cast including Takehiro Hira, Mari Yamamoto and Akira Emoto.
Film like this breathe life into you, takes experiences you may not encounter on a day to day basis but gives them a relatable aspect to show that life all means the same to us in the end but we have different journeys on how we live it. If Japanese culture isn’t something you are overly familiar with don’t worry, even after living in the country for 7 years, it seems Phillip our lead character doesn’t fully grasp the lives people in Japan. He sees it from afar but never sees it up close leading to a series of discoveries in his own self and the world around him. A lovely experience to learn more about Japanese culture and there will always be something to take from this whatever you as an audience member sees fit.
Photo Credit Searchlight Pictures
Brendan Fraser is perfect in this role as the struggling actor who finds himself at an impasse in his life and wants meaning in his experiences. He has this gravitas of a loveable father figure, which is one part of where the story of “Rental Family” takes us. Sweet and moving in his work this provides another reason why people should never have forgotten about Fraser as he has the talent to take on films that rely heavily on his emotional core. Sadly this is where Fraser takes it as far as he can, don’t get me wrong there will be sniffles and you will feel the heart of this film but there’s relationships that never get enough time to develop to warrant the full hit of emotion it’s aiming for. The standout in the supporting cast is Akira Emoto, he has some beautifully acted scenes with Fraser as the retired actor that sadly is suffering from dementia. Their story whilst could’ve been fleshed out does end in a cathartic way mainly due to the level of performance we see that highlights why life and our memories are so important to us.
Photo Credit Searchlight Pictures
Visually safe, everything shot is done well and with a story such as this you don’t necessarily need it to take any risks. Some nice shots of landscapes and the city of Tokyo but the film mainly keeps the focus on the characters on the screen. Competently shot, scored, directed everything done here is good, there’s no blowing your mind with anything but that’s completely fine, sometimes what we want to experience is something good and uplifting.
Each individual will always take something away from this film, whether it be small or big it’s films like this exist to do. A charming, wholesome ride of finding purpose in life and how we affect others. Led by another great performance by Brendan Fraser, this is a piece of work anyone wanting to have a nice time and feel some emotions should give a try.
Releases in UK cinemas January 9th 2026
