I Wanted to Like ‘Death of a Unicorn’
Téa Leoni, Will Poulter, Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega, and Anthony Carrigan in Death of a Unicorn | Credit: A24
Elliott (Paul Rudd) and his daughter, Ridley (Jenna Ortega), accidentally hit a unicorn on their way to the remote home of Elliott’s uber-wealthy employer. Of course, horrors and shenanigans ensue.
I really wanted to like this film. I was excited about this version of “eat the rich” content featuring some really interesting mythological creatures. Having grown up during the height of Lisa Frank’s powers, I wanted to see a different version of unicorns. This horror/comedy sounded like a great time to me.
Unfortunately, the film doesn’t come together very well. There are a lot of good ideas here, but the story isn’t as impactful as it could’ve been.
I think Death of a Unicorn suffers from not knowing what it wants to be. It’s billed as a horror/comedy, but it doesn’t strike a great balance between the two. While there are some funny moments, especially from the uber-rich people at this compound, it’s not as funny as I wanted it to be.
I almost wish that this film had been more ridiculous and over the top. I wanted The Righteous Gemstones’ level of ridiculousness to really sell this premise. The film seems to want to go there, but doesn’t quite achieve the level of parody I was looking for.
Then there’s the horror part of this film. The premise of Death of a Unicorn is so great. We are prepared to follow these characters as they are stalked by these mythical creatures. This remote location is both idyllic and creepy, making it the perfect setting for everything that will go down. The unfortunate part is that the horror elements come too late in the film.
Most of the first half is a lot of people talking. Sometimes, there are humorous moments, and sometimes, there are good points, but it’s a lot of talking. We learn about the company that Elliott works for, the family that owns it, and Elliott’s desire to stay on their good side. We also discover that Ridley is not like the rest of them, she marches to the beat of her own drum, and has a connection to the unicorns.
But most of it just feels like standard fare. There’s nothing particularly interesting or novel that’s communicated through these characters. They all feel like characters we’ve seen before without any particularly unique or interesting attributes.
Because the horror parts that we’d been primed for come so late in the film, Death of a Unicorn feels like a much longer film than it is. I kept wondering when things would start to escalate. Once they did, it was pretty fun, but getting there took way too long to get there.
Jenna Ortega in Death of a Unicorn | Credit: A24
One aspect that I appreciated about this film is that Ridley’s knowledge and passion for art history help her make sense of what’s happening to them. This resonated with me because most of the classes I took in college were humanities, including some art history. In a world where STEM and business have been lauded as more valuable than the humanities, I think that seeing the value of learning from art is becoming even more important.
Everyone else in the house dismisses Ridley’s discoveries and the conclusions she makes about these creatures and what they want. Not listening to the art history major has some major consequences. What a lovely lesson embedded within this eat-the-rich storyline.
While Death of a Unicorn doesn’t quite pack the punch that it should, it’s a great premise that I’ve enjoyed thinking about. It’s also nice to see a film highlighting the importance of art and the stories we tell. Though the rest of the film is largely nothing special, I really appreciated that theme.