An introduction to Rental Family
Notes from an introduction to Rental Family (Hikari 2025) by Rachel Patton, given at our screening in August 2026. Our audience gave this film 4.7 stars.
Rental Family is a film from a Japanese director known simply as Hikari, who moved from Osaka to Hollywood and works between Japan and the USA. The film shows both cultures’ influences. Hikari’s highly acclaimed first feature film, 37 Seconds, was released in 2019 and she has more recently directed episodes of both Beef and Tokyo Vice.
Leading actor Brendan Fraser is a very familiar face, having appeared on our screens in the 1990s in George of the Jungle, as Rick O’Connell in The Mummy films, then in the 2000s in The Quiet American and many others, most recently winning an Oscar for ‘Best Actor’ in 2023 film The Whale. Supporting actresses Mari Yamamoto, playing Phillip’s colleague Aiko, and young Shannon Mahina Gormon who plays Mia, also received acclaim for their performances.
Real life connections
Having lived in Japan in my twenties, I was very drawn to this film. In fact, I went to see it the week it was released! As a Japanese language teacher, I have frequent contact with Japanese people and am always a little fascinated with (and sometimes a little protective or defensive about) how Japan is portrayed to the west. I found this gentle film quite beautiful, and recommended it for Films at the Bundy.
I also know men like Phillip, the main character in this film played by Brendan Fraser, who choose to make a life in Japan; Westerners making a living from their ‘foreignness’ and searching for something in their adopted home.
The film’s plot was inspired by real-life businesses that do actually exist in Japan. The first known business of this type (I’m trying not to give any spoilers here!) was Nihon Kokusai Honbu, established in Tokyo in 1991. Since then, others have appeared, all providing a similar service. Brendan Fraser’s character finds himself working for one of these unusual companies in Tokyo and the film explores ideas of human connection and loneliness, of our need for companionship in all its forms and explores a unique Japanese solution. These services have existed in Japan for the last 30 years or so but are perhaps linked to ancient elements of Japanese culture.
Reactions and reviews
Reactions to the film were a little mixed. Richard Roeper on RogerEgbert.com described it as “a beautiful and contemplative film” and wrote that it was possibly their favourite of 2025. In Script, Rahul Menon praised Hikari’s direction as “simple yet beautifully expressive. There’s a warmth and patience in her storytelling that mirrors the film’s themes.”
Other reviewers are a little more critical. The Independent called it “a work of broad and deep compassion” that nonetheless shies from difficult questions, while The Guardian gave it 2 stars in September 2025 and followed up with a 1 star review in January 2026!
When reflecting on why I enjoyed the film so much, I think it was the lack of overt judgement that appealed. What initially seem to be straightforward moral issues are gently explored. Ambiguity between right and wrong is something I always enjoy in film. And I think I also just love seeing Japan on screen.
Further reading
Rental Family review – Brendan Fraser is stranded in mawkish misfire - Radheyan Simonpillai, The Guardian, 8 Sep 2025.
Rental Family Review: A Gentle Ode to Loneliness, Connection, and the Roles We Play - Rahul Menon, Script, 22 Oct 2025
Rental Family (review) - Richard Roeper, RogerEgbert.com, 21 Nov 2025
Rental Family offers connection in an increasingly polarised world - Velvet Winter, ABC, 25 Dec 2025
Rental Family review – Brendan Fraser seeks meaning in pointless Japanese role-play drama - Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian, 14 Jan 2026
Rental Family review – Brendan Fraser’s treacly Japan film doesn’t want to ask difficult questions - Clarisse Loughrey, The Independent, 15 Jan 2026