Entertainment

Now Playing: Rental Family

This will get your tears flowing.

Published

January 16, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

In Eat Pray Love, recent divorcee Liz Gilbert goes on a journey of self-discovery by travelling to Italy, India, and Bali. Someone should tell Gilbert that Japan is everyone’s preferred Eat Pray Love destination these days. Today, tourists from all over the world like going to Japan because of its different, almost perfect serene, culture.

However, the truth of Japan is less romantic than what’s shown in travelogues: absurd working hours, not enough time for personal life, and societal pressures to do only what’s expected. It’s this Japan that Rental Family wants you to see.

Truths

In Rental Family, Brendan Fraser plays Phillip Vanderploeg, a struggling American actor living in Japan. After failing to land a gig outside of the odd commercial here and there, an unconventional opportunity suddenly lands on his lap: to work for a rental family agency, which provides stand-ins for social situations. In one case, Philip pretends to be a young woman’s groom, so her family doesn’t ask questions when she moves and starts a life of her own in Canada.

It’s no surprise that Philip exclaims a loud “the f*ck?” when he first realizes what the firm does. Aiko (Mari Yamamoto), one of his colleagues, explains that this is how Japan works. Instead of paying for therapy, the Japanese people would rather pay for someone to pretend for them. For an outsider looking in, the practice seems strange, but it’s real. Rental family agencies have been around for a while.

Despite Aiko’s insistence that this is a Japanese phenomenon, Philip eventually understands that these agencies provide something more than just a country-exclusive need: the desire to be seen and to be heard.

Rental Family is a film that speaks to everyone. Often, we need someone to fill those gaps in our lives: a missing father, a missing lover, a missing friend. It’s a truth that should feel self-evident, but the film remains a poignant reminder of whatever, whoever is missing in our lives. We see ourselves in Kikuo Hasegawa (Akira Emoto), a retired actor who just wants a friend before his memory withers away. We see ourselves in Mia Kawasaki (Shannon Mahina Gorman), a young girl whose father left her.

And lies

Philip plays a multitude of roles: a father, a journalist, a cheerleader, a groom, a friend. It’s his job to play a role so credible that his client believes in the illusion. Essentially, he’s a professional liar.

However, Philip finds himself also believing in the same lies he’s crafted. He gets attached to a few of his clients, especially Mia whom he quickly becomes close to, as if as her real father. Even when his boss Shinji (Takehiro Hira) tells him not to get too personal with his clients, he cares for them beyond his initial assignment.

It’s the lie that makes the movie so believable. Who among us has never felt inadequate to play a certain role? Too incompetent to be a father, a lover, and a friend?

Ironically, the one who plays the part most authentically is the one person willing to build the lie, Philip. He becomes a better companion to their clients than the people closest to them. As the saying goes, “fake it ‘till you make it.”

Sometimes, the mask slips. Sometimes, Philip’s boss warns him that he’s too close, or a client ends the relationship themselves. When this happens, Philip has to confront the lie, which can mean that he tells his client that he was lying.

And yet, he doesn’t leave as if it’s just the conclusion of a deal. He opens up and makes himself vulnerable. He confronts what he did and promises to do better. Lying is easier, and we lie all the time. We tell ourselves that we’re the best at what we do. If we do it enough, we start to believe.

But Rental Family is about the truth behind the lie. An untruth can be the foundation, but a relationship only truly prospers with being vulnerable. It’s about realizing that, just as the other person needs us, we also need them. We’re all rental families in our own way.

Entertainment

Street Fighter special look: Blanka vs. Ryu

Jason Momoa, Andrew Koji’s characters face off

Published

August 2, 2026

GadgetMatch

Paramount Pictures has released a new special look for Street Fighter featuring Jason Momoa and Andrew Koji.

The short, minute-long clip shows the actors’ respective characters, Blanka and Ryu, in battle.

It opens with a chained prisoner struck by extreme electrical charges, transforming into the green-skinned, electricity-infused Blanka.

He unleashes a fierce roar. Meanwhile, Ryu drops into a fighting stance, but tells Blanka he does not want to fight him.

Forced to defend himself, Ryu then fires a signature Hadouken fireball towards Blanka, as the teaser cuts to the Street Fighter title card.

Street Fighter debuts in cinemas starting October 14. It is directed by Kitao Sakurai and stars an ensemble cast that includes Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, Callina Liang as Chun-Li, Joe “Roman Reigns” Anoai as Akuma, and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson as Balrog, among others.

The film is set in 1993 when estranged Street Fighters Ryu and Ken Masters are thrown into combat when Chun-Li recruits them for the next World Warrior Tournament.

Entertainment

Now Playing: Spider-Man: Brand New Day

It’s a must watch for Spidey fans who want to see Peter Parker enter his sad boy era.

Published

July 29, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

The Holland-led Spider-Man trilogy is one of my favorite franchises in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Compared to other series with admittedly disjointed plots, all of Spidey’s storylines have a clear thread leading from one to the next. Since the fourth entries after trilogies are historically lackluster, I had a lot of trepidation heading into Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Thankfully, all those worries were unfounded. Brand New Day follows the same throughline as its predecessors, once again reinforcing Spider-Man as the strongest franchise that Marvel offers fans today.

A brand new day indeed

Coming from No Way Home, Brand New Day still has Peter Parker live a new life as a literal nobody where no one remembers who he is. So begins his existence as just Spider-Man with no friends or family.

When a new and unseen threat ravages through New York City, Spidey starts to wish that he still had friends to help him out, which leads him on an inevitable collision course with Ned and MJ. Ironically, it also leads him to other characters in the city, including the Hulk and the Punisher.

A cacophony of villains

When I first saw the trailer, I was worried about the astounding number of villains from the get-go. After all, one of the biggest problems in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3, the most maligned entry in Spider-Man movie history, was the villains. Though far from the movie’s biggest problem, having too many bad guys without a solid plot led to its terrible reception. You can see why Brand New Day’s trailer raises some flags.

If you were thinking the same thing, Brand New Day does indeed have a cohesive plot. Everything flows neatly into one another. Each emotional beat of Peter feeling for his solitude mixes well with the action. In here, fight scenes feel like they have a purpose.

And there is a big bad here. It’s not just a collection of guys that Spidey has to go through. That big bad, who shall not be named at this time, doesn’t feel like just a placeholder for Peter’s internal struggles. They have a character of their own and their own struggles to solve. I wouldn’t say they’re at the level of Loki just yet, but they definitely have a better go at it than most of the MCU’s other villains.

Marvel’s New York City finally debuts

Despite being a prime location since 2012’s Avengers, New York City never really felt like the quintessential city for superheroes in the comics. In the movies, the city was just another city to be ravaged when a new villain comes along.

For the first time, Brand New Day makes the city feel like a lived-in world with a bunch of superheroes living in the neighborhood. And they do pop up.

Does Peter have a scientific problem that only a very specific hero can solve? It’s a good thing Bruce Banner is just around the corner. Does he need some muscle? Well, the Punisher is skulking around somewhere. Plus, there’s even a succinct reason why other superheroes can’t help out.

In this way, Brand New Day presents itself more like a comic book series than a one-off movie. It’s like following the story alone from issue to issue. It’s not the most perfect adaptation of the landmark city, but it goes a long way from just another ravaging of New York.

Peter’s sadness

Everything here hinges on Peter’s loneliness. Despite meeting a trove of characters across the cinematic universe, Peter yearns for time with his loved ones. But they’re gone.

Unlike the past three films where he always had someone to go home to, he has no one here. Tony Stark is dead. Aunt May is gone. Happy has gone to parts unknown. Ned and MJ have no memory of him. Brand New Day has a way of making you feel for his aches, whether the way he still keeps track of MJ or some physiological changes as a result of his predicament.

It also helps that the movie’s big bad has similar motivations. Both serve as perfect mirrors against each other, elevating both their stories effectively. And that’s all I’ll say about that.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a few steps behind from being a perfect Marvel movie, but it’s still an extremely strong part of the Spider-Man mythos. The trilogy, now quadrilogy, remains Marvel’s most consistent franchises to date. It’s an absolute must-watch.

Entertainment

UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony hits Makati in October

Determination arrives in October.

Published

July 28, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

For so small of a game, UNDERTALE quickly made it into the gaming world’s hall of fame. Despite being only a decade old, the small title has had a major influence for modern-day gamers because of its unique gameplay, its lo-fi art, and, of course, its catchy soundtrack. If you’re a fan of UNDERTALE’s soundtrack, a unique concert experience is headed your way.

On October 17, Film Concerts PH, in partnership with SOHO Live, is hosting UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony at the Proscenium Theater in Rockwell, Makati.

The concert will be performed by the Filharmonika Orchestra and conducted by Thanapol Setabrahmana. Personally curated by creator Toby Fox and developed by Lambert Jackson with Materia Music, the concert experience showcases the game’s most recognizable tunes laid over gameplay footage playing simultaneously. Plus, for the world tour, the experience will have expanded scoring.

In the game, you play as a small child stuck in the mysterious Underground filled with interesting characters and monsters. Unlike traditional RPGs, UNDERTALE asks players to choose between building relationships and chasing after wins. It’s a unique experience that’s defined by whether you chose to make friends or fought your way to the top. It teaches players to value different ways to solve problems, all while showering them with its one-of-a-kind humor.

Pre-sales for the concert, exclusively for members of the Film Concerts PH community, start on August 4. Public sales, however, will start on August 11 via Ticketmelon.