Reader's Digest Australia Dec/Jan 2025

JAMES LISLE/SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES. THE NOUN PROJECT (FILM ICON) Rental Family Starring Brendan Fraser The Brendan Fraser “Brenaissance” that started with his Oscar- winning turn in The Whale is cemented thanks to this bighearted come- dy. Phillip (Brendan Fraser) is a down-and-out American actor adrift in Tokyo who begins working for a “rental family” agency to play various roles in other people’s lives. (Yes, these companionship companies really do exist in Japan.) He stands in as a groom in a wedding, a journalist in- terviewing an elderly actor with dementia and, ever so delicately, a father to an adorable girl (Shannon Gorman) so she can be admitted to a strict private school. In a world where too many people turn to social media in place of human interaction, what a joy to watch Phillip find his purpose by forging authentic bonds. That kind of warmth always translates. (In cinemas December 26) — MR 138 December 2025/January 2026 reader ’ s digest FILM The Paper Starring Domhnall Gleeson In this spinoff of The Office, the crew that once followed Michael Scott around the fictional paper company Dunder Mifflin finds a new subject in Ned Sampson (Domhnall Gleeson), the freshly hired editor-in-chief of Toledo, Ohio, newspaper the Truth Teller. Aiming to return the paper to its former glory, Sampson, who makes up in idealismwhat he lacks in self-awareness, must transmit his love of journalism to inexperienced ad salespeople and other newsroom staff. (“Isn’t a byline an article’s last line? Bye?” asks one of his charges.) Along the way, he bumps up against challenges like prima donna editor Esmeralda Grand (Sabrina Impaccia- tore) and the rise of digital journalism. Every gag about traditional media is inked with love for the printed word. (Season 1 is available for stream- ing on Binge and Foxtel Now) —Caroline Fanning AARON EPSTEIN/PEACOCK. THE NOUN PROJECT (TV ICON) TV readersdigest.com.au 139 The RD List