Brendan Fraser ‘s comeback story may have reached its peak with his Oscar-winning role in “The Whale” (2022), but Hikari’s moving drama “ Rental Family ” proves he still has new depths to explore . The Japanese-set dramedy premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Saturday and could very well serve as Fraser’s next ticket into the best actor race.

In the film, Fraser plays Phillip Vandarploeug, a lonely American actor adrift in Tokyo who begins working for a “rental family” agency, stepping into surrogate roles in the lives of strangers. What could be a quirky premise blossoms into a deeply humane exploration of belonging, identity and emotional labor. The conceit is inherently crowdpleasing — a man stumbling into strangers’ lives and finding unexpected connection — but

See Full Page