Rental Family

Rental Family is a lighthearted charming comedy hiding something deeper and darker that never quite eclipses the surface but still nonetheless works. The film centers on Phillip (Brendan Fraser, bringing his natural charm and warmth) a struggling american actor living in Japan, who is hired for a most unusual acting job, becoming part of an agency that rents actors to stand in for major figures in people’s lives. He soon becomes a groom for a young woman, a journalist interviewing a beloved actor now in the throes of dementia and a father to a young girl for the purposes of documentation for a new school, through these experiences he unexpectedly connects with the people he is asked to play a part in the lives of. Rental Family is a sweet little fable that sometimes struggles with the moral implications of its premise but benefits hugely from Fraser’s terrific performance (seriously i feel like anyone else in this role would have made the flaws in this story less easy to forgive) and some insightful observations about the line of work Phillip and his colleagues are in. The biggest issue with this film is there is a fascinating psychological drama or documentary even to be made about these types of services and the moral implications of what is at best helpful deception and at worst professional gaslighting, Rental Family instead chooses to ignore that for the sake of family friendly dramedy, which is a tad disappointing. That being said i am not here to review the film i wanted this to be but the film it is and on that basis its pretty damn good…just try not to think about the implications too much. 

I Give It 4 1/2 Stars!!!