The 2025 horror/comedy Death of a Unicorn leaves us with one question by film’s end. “Kids, who’d have em, am I right?” And to a lesser degree, “Don’t touch that you don’t know where it’s been!”
Death of a Unicorn could have been a Disney creation. Considering the depths the filmmakers went to repudiate the existence of God and rely instead on myths and magic. I don’t mean to put a downer on the whole thing here, as the film is a fantasy/comedy about unicorns.
Sorry about that.
The Story
A recently bereaved father and daughter travel for a combination business weekend. They manage to hit and kill a unicorn on their journey. The father’s boss treats the magical creature’s death as a new business venture. Death of a Unicorn is all about family. Parents and their kids and their disappointments with said children. Ultimately, it is about the rich kind and the not so rich kind. And let’s face it, the unicorn kid probably irritated the heck out of its parents.
The Cast
Paul Rudd is Elliot.
Jenna Ortega is Ridley.
Will Poulter is Shepard, AKA; Shep, AKA; Sheppy.
Téa Leoni is Belinda.
Richard E. Grant is Odell.
Jessica Hynes is Shaw.
Anthony Carrigan is Griff.
Sunita Mani is Dr Bhatia.
Steve Park is Dr Song.
it works
Death of a Unicorn blends old world fantasy with new world science fiction. There is a slight nod to E.T. the Extra Terrestrial, with the whole incubation section. Plus the removal of the “specimen.”
The underlying story, is of a father failing to understand his daughter after the death of the mother/wife. Once again, this feels so Disney. Is there no Uncle Walt film where the “kid” loses their mother,father, brother, sister, family, et al? Not in the classics. *Although it has to be argued that Pinocchio stands to regain his “fam” after becoming a real boy.*
The main story is all about unicorns, of course. It is also about the various magic that they can perform. It is also about the incredible violence they can administer when vexed. However, the underlying tale is about kids.
Lastly, the film is funny in unexpected places. “Stop counting!” “Go on little sister. Regale me.” “Are you vaping? Do you vape?” “No.” The dialogue is heart warming in the right places and downright funny in others.
Disappointment
Both families are disappointed in their kids. The snotty rich family are keenly disappointed in Sheppy The lawyer also feels let down by his kid, Ridley. *And who was a fan of the Alien franchise? Clearly, writer/director Alex Scharfman is paying a homage to Ridley Scott here.* Back to Elliot, another ET nod here, who is disappointed at his lack of a relationship with his kiddo.
Both the good guys, Elliot and Ridley, and the bad guys Odell, Belinda and Sheppy, fail at bonding.
Anger
Do not be surprised if anger is the first emotion you feel when watching Death of a Unicorn. A sort of annoyed and unsurprised rage with the characters in the film. Only Ortega’s character is without blemish here (Pun intended.) even her father Elliot is motivated by monetary gain. Granted it is to provide security for his daughter, but it is still wrong.
Odell and his family are more concerned about immortality. Plus the rewards that this will earn them in terms of eternal wealth.
Cast is king and queen
Rudd and Ortega are doing what they do best; they act their little cotton socks off. Grant and Poulter pretty much kill it as the greedy monsters their characters really are. Leoni shows that she gives good villain.
Kudos to Carrigan as Griff, the sycophant and also to Hynes who knocks it out of the park as Shaw. *Hynes is a long time favorite. I first saw her in Shaun of the Dead, “Shaun!” Becoming an instant fan, I then marathoned all of Spaced. If you know, then you know.*
death of a unicorn bts
Clearly the special FX are a combination of practical and video, aka CGI. They work brilliantly. It cannot be easy to bring unicorns to life, but puppeteer Mihály Hajagos and the team make this work.
DP Larry Fong and editor Ron Dulin work brilliantly as a team here. Their effort combined with that of the puppeteers create a believable world.
The Verdict
Death of a Unicorn is one of those films that could earn 6 out of 5 stars. But I can’t go there. So 5 stars it is. This dark comedy, horror, fantasy offers so much. A number of deaths and a great huge dose of irony. It is also funny as heck. A24 delivers here with stunning panache and leaves you wondering at the greed of man.
It is can be rented on a number of streaming platforms: Prime, YouTube, Apple TV Plus, et al.
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