Death of a Unicorn
Starring: Jenna Ortega, Paul Rudd, Will Poulter, Tea Leoni
Directed By: Alex Scharfman
What happens when you cross an eat-the rich satire like Knives Out with the fantasy action of Jurassic Park? It doesn’t really work! In case you were still wondering about the concept, you can watch it play out in Death of a Unicorn, a campy horror tale blending a few too many themes.
Death of a Unicorn follows father-daughter duo Elliot (Paul Rudd) and Ridley (Jenna Ortega) as they travel to Elliot’s rich employer’s family mansion for a weekend that will change all of their lives. On the way, they accidentally hit a unicorn with their car in the secluded wilderness. What does the mystical creature have in store?
This is a very bizarre movie. It tries to be way too many things at one time. One minute it’s a meditation on grief, the next a gory horror movie, the next a mythological folk tale, the next a Parasite-wannabe tackling class warfare. Director Alex Scharfman crafts a film that has way too many cooks in the kitchen. With A24 as the distributor and Ari Aster as producer, it’s not a shock the film is out there thematically, but I’m a little curious about who the target audience is for Death of a Unicorn. When I think of unicorns, I think of fairytales, magic, and Lisa Frank school supplies. This movie turns them into twisted, dark creatures that would skew to a more horror-centric audience. It’s an odd dichotomy that makes it difficult to pinpoint who the movie wants to target.
As Ridley, Jenna Ortega plays an iteration of a character we’ve seen from her before; the angsty teen solving a dark supernatural mystery, despite all of the adults ignoring her. It’s pretty much the exact characterization as her characters in Wednesday and Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice. Despite that, Ortega is a talented actress. I do enjoy her performances. I’d love to see her play a different type of character though.
Paul Rudd is Elliot, the father torn between providing for his family and listening to his daughter. Elliott is a massively frustrating character. He never listens to his daughter and puts the needs of Odell’s family above his own daughter’s safety. So many moments in Death of a Unicorn feel like watching a horror movie where everyone has one brain cell. As a viewer, you tell them “don’t do that idiotic thing” but you know what’s going to happen…they’re going to do the idiotic thing. Elliott continually makes poor decisions and it’s hard to feel any sympathy for him. Rudd does what he can with the character but the source material is lacking depth.
All of Odell’s family are portrayed as over-the-top caricatures of the ultra wealthy. The stand out of the family is Will Poulter as Shepard who has some pretty memorable one liners. He’s a trust fund party boy who would be lost without his father’s money.
Richard E. Grant is Odell, the ailing millionaire who will do whatever it takes to make a profit. He’s not above putting everyone around him in danger if it means money is involved.
This movie is so repetitive in its situational violence that it lacks any real tension. A character hears something, the camera is framed in a specific angle, a unicorn proceeds to attack in that exact place. Rinse. Repeat. It gets to a point where you can guess exactly what’s going to happen before the scene takes place. To see these repeated scenarios play out so many times is very monotonous.
Death of a Unicorn blends too many themes and repetitive situations resulting in a mess of a mythological folk tale.
My Rating: 4/10