REVIEW: THE RENTAL attempts to do for Airbnb what PSYCHO did for motels. This is actor Dave Franco's directorial debut, and it's a slick, sophisticated indie thriller that, while a slow burn, adds up to a creepily effective creeper even though it's not quite as terrifying as some are saying. Perhaps it depends on your definition of horror, as for some the idea of being unknowingly watched is right up there with slashers and body horror.
For much of its running time, THE RENTAL is a character-based drama, very much in the spirit of co-writer Joe Swanberg's other films, which have often explored the dynamic between two couples. Here, we've got Dan Stevens and Sheila Vand playing outwardly affectionate business partners and probable soulmates – but there's a catch. Their partners are other people, with Stevens' Charlie married to Alison Brie's blissfully ignorant Michelle, while Vand's Mina is dating Charlie's ex-con brother Josh (Jeremy Allen White), who fears she's too good for him.
Things come to a head when they rent a gorgeous home for a weekend of drugs and drinking, but they immediately get off on the wrong foot when Mina takes an intense dislike to the racist property manager, played by the great Toby Huss, while her mutual attraction with Charlie can't be denied, especially once they take some ecstasy and their partners hit the sack.
Of course, being a thriller they have a lot more to worry about than issues with their partners, with it made obvious early on that they're being spied on, although Franco waits until the film is more than half over to ramp up the scares and gore as the body count starts to rise and we get an idea of why they're being targeted. In some ways, it feels like Franco's trying to launch an indie horror franchise with this, and by the time the stylish end credits rolled it seemed like he could be on to something, provided the caliber of the cast remains this high.
Stevens plays against type as a yuppie scumbag, who, in his first scene, explains to the Iranian-American Mina that no, there's no way she could ever really be the target of racism. He's almost too much of a prick as it gets hard to see what either Mina or Michelle sees in him besides his looks, and Stevens was much more likable playing the antagonist in the recent EUROVISION. I suppose that's the point, and it has to be said that both him and Brie are brave playing largely unlikable, annoying characters who take a backseat to the more affable pair played by Vand and White. Vand is the default lead in some ways, but Mina's not necessarily set up as a heroine, with her provocation of Huss's character setting up the violent final act, while White character has such a hair-trigger temper that you just know it's gonna come out in a way that screws everyone over. Vand is really good, with this being a solid showcase for the star of A GIRL WALKS HOME ALONE AT NIGHT, who has a lot of presence, while White, despite playing very close to type if you consider his work on “Shameless”, is similarly good.
While all four are excellent, Franco seems to have a real loathing for upwardly mobile yuppies, with no one written in a way to totally earn your sympathy, even though that seems to be by design. You won’t really find yourself rooting for anyone, which maybe undercuts the tension a bit. Nevertheless, it’s stylishly put together, with nice shooting by DP Christian Sprenger and a sparse score by Danny Bensi & Saunder Jurriaans. There's also some much needed comic relief here and there, particularly from the gifted Brie, who ill-advisedly takes some drugs right before things go south. On the whole, it's not up there with the best of the new "arthouse horror" genre pioneered by THE RENTAL's distributor IFC or A24, but it's a solid enough little thriller that should make for a fun weekend watch in a summer that's sadly short of many new films.