The Rental movie review & film summary (2020)
Franco has suggested that “The Rental” was conceived out of his general discomfort at Airbnb rentals. I get it. We just accept that we’re spending time in someone else’s house—someone else who has a key and can come and go as they please. Franco took that general unease and turned it into “The Rental,” the story of two couples who will almost certainly break up in the near future ... if they can survive the weekend. At first, with its wood shrouded POV shots, one might mistake this for an homage to ‘80s slashers, but it felt more akin to a Michael Haneke movie to me. Like Haneke, Franco is interested in actual, physical horror compounding emotional devastation and destroyed domesticity.
Charlie (Dan Stevens) has a success to celebrate at work with his partner and friend Mina (Sheila Vand). From the beginning, it feels like Charlie and Mina are close in ways that could arguably be called dangerous. The film opens with her physically over his shoulder, giving the impression that they are one of the two couples, and then twisting it to reveal that Mina is really dating Charlie’s brother Josh (Jeremy Allen White). The success has led Charlie to an Airbnb listing for a gorgeous house and he suggests that the two couples—Charlie’s wife Michelle (Alison Brie) fills out the quartet—take the chance to get away for the weekend. They’ll hike, drink, do some drugs, and hang out in a hot tub. What could go wrong?
From the beginning, there are signs that something could go very wrong, both in the relationship department and things that are far more sinister. Mina reveals that she tried to rent the house and was denied by the manager, a creep named Taylor (Toby Huss), only to have Charlie get confirmed an hour later. Was Mina denied because of her race? Taylor blatantly asking how she “got mixed up” with the other three white people pretty much confirms that. And Mina is uncomfortable when it’s clear Taylor has been in the house while the four were out for a walk. There’s an argument to be made that Franco and Swanberg are suggesting something simple with their movie: If a rental or the person renting it makes you uncomfortable, go somewhere else.
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