Death of a Unicorn review
The best aspect of Death of a Unicorn is the one it refuses to commit to.
New movie reviews will not contain spoilers.
Death of a Unicorn
Directed by Alex Scharfman
Written by Alex Scharfman
Starring Jenna Ortega, Paul Rudd, David Pasquesi, Anthony Carrigan, Tea Leoni, Richard E. Grant, Will Poulter and Jessica Hynes
Death of a Unicorn Review
The idea of watching Jenna Ortega, Paul Rudd, Will Poulter Tea Leoni and Richard E. Grant in a creature feature is an exciting one. The few times that Death of a Unicorn commits to that idea…it is one. Unfortunately, Death of a Unicorn wants to be a lot more than a bloody run-in with vengeful unicorns. Instead of setting atmosphere and delivering a fully formed creature feature…it wants to be a comedy with fantasy elements and emotional family moments. It fails at pretty much all those things. Only the unicorn horror elements can shake Death of a Unicorn from its self-imposed doldrums.
Elliot (Paul Rudd) is traveling to his rich boss’s home with his daughter Ridley (Jenna Ortega) when he hits a unicorn. After bashing it in the head with a tire iron…he stuffs it into the car and continues on his way. His boss Odell (Richard E. Grant) is dying, and Elliot stands to take over a lucrative position in the company. Odell wants his wife Belinda (Tea Leoni) and son Shepard (Will Poulter) to get to know Elliot and his daughter before entrusting him with the company. Ridley, having touched the dying unicorn’s horn, has a strange connection to the creature. Something that will hopefully come in handy when the unicorn’s parents arrive looking for revenge.
I mentioned the multiple genres that Death of a Unicorn attempts (and fails) to fuse together. It also tries to have a bit of social commentary on the horribleness of rich people. I’m all for taking down the wealthy in both art and reality…but as a fifth hat on what should have been a straightforward creature feature…it feels tacked on. Sure, it gives the characters some beats to flesh them out…but it never seems anything more than half-bakes as an idea. The evil here centers around the group’s discovery that the unicorn blood has healing properties. The animal’s horn is even more effective. Odell goes from his deathbed to full health in no time when some unicorn horn shavings are introduced to his system. What would an already wealthy family do with a limited supply of the cure for cancer? Sell it to the highest bidder, of course.
We’re not supposed to be surprised by this. What we’re supposed to take from it is that Ridley is a good person…and her father goes along with the selfish plan far too long. There’s an attempt at an emotional resolution to that story. It might work for you. I found it underwhelming given how often Elliot refuses to listen to his daughter’s concerns. To be honest, most of the family drama between Elliot and Ridley ever rises to anything more than annoying.
Death of a Unicorn also tries to land plenty of comedic beats. A shockingly low percentage of them land given the talent involved. Fantasy elements only fare slightly better. Death of a Unicorn leans into the fantastical frequently regarding its unicorn assailants. Ridley investigates historical depictions of the creatures and uncovers some helpful information. This aspect of the story works a bit better because it allows Ridley to be more resourceful and take on a traditional final girl role…even if the story itself spends too much time attempting to ignore that it’s a horror movie.
When it does decide to be a horror movie…Death of a Unicorn is a fun watch. Watching unicorns slasher kill their way through the family compound is delightful. There are fun kills and some nice gory moments. It even, occasionally, allows scenes to play out like a full-on horror movie. Very occasionally, unfortunately. Seeing how well the movie works when it allows the creature feature to go all out makes the amount of time wasted on failing concepts frustrating. What could have been an A list horror surprise overreaches with too few ideas to fill out its multiple other genre attempts. Neither funny nor dramatic…Death of a Unicorn is a part time creature feature that should have been much more.
Scare Value
There’s a solid creature feature in Death of a Unicorn. It’s largely drowned out by several genres that don’t work. The comedy is flat. The family drama is forgettable. Even the fantasy elements feel underdeveloped. When the movie decides to go buck wild…it works. It works despite the film refusing to lean all the way into the feel of a creature feature. The end result is more of a missed opportunity than a rousing watch.
2.5/5
Death of a Unicorn Link
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