The plot of Rental Family , directed by HIKARI and starring Brendan Fraser, reads almost like science fiction . Out of necessity, Phillip (Fraser), an out-of-work American actor living in Tokyo, takes a job as a rental companion. The position requires him to fill in as whatever the person employing him may need to accomplish a goal in their personal life. Phillip might work as a man crying at a funeral to make the dead seem more significant, or something far more involved, like a best friend, or even a father to a young daughter. But rental companion services aren’t just real, but a considerable industry in Japan, where the first companion service, the Japan Efficiency Corporation, launched in 1991.

Fraser was shocked by the concept when he first read the screenplay, just before the 2

See Full Page