Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega as Elliot and Ridley Kintner make for an unusual father-daughter duo. You sense that immediately in the opening scenes of A24’s Death of a Unicorn, As they drive up a deserted mountainous road, there’s bickering and tension, and then inattention that shapes the rest of this rather lame horror-comedy tale.
Suddenly, their car hits a horse-like animal on the road, which turns out to be a unicorn, and both have an uncomfortable interaction with it as it suffers from the blow.
Unicorns are often thought to be magical, mythical creatures with rainbows and butterflies hovering around them, but in this imagining by first-time director Alex Scharfman, they may have some magical properties but they are actually frightening beasts who take great pleasure in goring people to death.
Ignorant of the dangers they’ve unleashed, after the accident, Ridley and Elliot continue on their journey to the home of a pharmaceutical chieftan whom Elliot works for as the company’s compliance attorney.
Played by Richard E. Grant, drug company CEO Odell Leopold is contending with a life-threatening illness as his wife and son (Téa Leoni and Will Poulter) alternate between caring for him and pursuing their own nefarious agendas.
It has many elements of a classic eat-the-rich story, with the Leopolds shown to be callous, cruel and uncaring to their hard-working household staff—and not very pleasant to Ridley and Elliot upon their arrival.
But as the Leopolds discover the healing properties of unicorn blood and the unimaginable wealth it can bring to the already mega-rich family, the movie changes tone from a comedy, mostly provided by Poulter’s new-age arrogance and wanton substance abuse, to a slaugherfest by a herd of rampaging beasts.
While it could be an interesting B-movie premise, especially with elements of ancient mythology and classic art swirling through the story, it’s bound to be a disappointment to horror and comedy fans alike.
