Rental Family

Bluesky

Everyone’s familiar with the phenomenon whereby there are no films about a certain subject for years and then suddenly lots come out at once. That’s one thing when the subject is vampires or bakeries or custody battles; it’s a little strangers when it’s out-of-work actors taking on jobs in which they pretend to be different people in real life. Austrian film Peacock, one of the two that made it through to awards consideration this year, follows a man who is gradually losing his own identity as a consequence of this sort of work. Rental Family, by contrast, sees its initially unhappy hero beginning to figure out who he is.

It requires a little bit of suspension of disbelief. if one is to pose as a succession of strangers, one can’t afford to be recognised in the street, so why would a Tokyo-based agency employ a white guy Brendan Fraser’s size? It’s down to Fraser himself to make this work – to convince viewers not just of the reality of his character, Phillip, but of that character’s ability to wow his interviewer, to convince in turn that he can play just about anything. Here that quiet confidence that has always been his strength really comes to the fore. It’s not a showy performance, but it’s a standout. Meanehile, co-writers Hikari (who also directs) and Stephen Blahut set about persuading us that there would realistically be enough demand for a man like him in that setting.

Where it could easily have been approached as farce, the story balances drama with a gentle kind of comedy, finding magic early on when Phillip steps in to give a lesbian’s family the illusion of the dream wedding they always wanted for her – one which, because he passes as a wealthy foreigner, also provides her with an excuse for discreetly disappearing from their lives to be with the woman she loves. He’s not completely convinced, threatening to do himself out of a job by asking why she doesn’t just come out, but this is not a film bent on forcing honesty on its characters or trumpeting it as the highest virtue in every situation. Here, people are allowed to be complicated. The higher value placed on the community as opposed to the individual in Japanese tradition contributes to the different focus of several of these roles, and Phillip, who has often found himself alone, begins to understand himself in a different ways, even though the assignments are short-lived.

Of course, this doesn’t always work. Most of the contexts in which he works are not emotionally demanding, but that changes when he’s asked to pose as the father of a young girl. Her single mother is trying to get her a place at a prestigious school which won’t accept her unless she’s seen to come from the right kind of family. The kid doesn’t understand this, of course, and objects to the notion that she should put up with a father who has been missing and apparently uninterested throughout her earlier life, so he has to win her over. In the process, the pair bond, sparking jealousy in her mother, and it becomes clear that their parting will precipitate a crisis.

A well paced, thoughtful film more interested in character than in drama for the sake of it, Rental Family may make some predictable moves but it often follows unpredictable paths. It’s beautifully performed by all involved, with a nice turn from Takehiro Hira as Phillip’s boss. Unshowy yet luminous cinematography and a light directorial touch allow it to develop almost organically, and it’s a pleasure to watch.

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