Movie Review: ‘Death Of A Unicorn’

by | Mar 27, 2025 | Featured Post, Movie Reviews, Movies | 0 comments


Greetings again from the darkness. When most people think of unicorns, they picture something along the lines of “My Little Pony”, or some other lovable, cuddly animal from a kids’ story. This feature film debut from writer-director Alex Scharfman is definitely not that. In fact, the inspiration from the classic JURASSIC PARK (1993) is quite evident in these unicorns (and one of the main themes). Welcome to a fantasy-comedy-slasher with more than a dash of social commentary.

Ridley (Jenna Ortega, “Wednesday”, BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE) and her dad Elliott (Paul Rudd, ANT-MAN) are on a road trip into the deep forest for a meeting with his employer, billionaire pharmaceutical CEO Odell Leopold (Richard E Grant, SALTBURN). Odell has terminal cancer and as his attorney, Elliott is hoping to close a deal that will set up himself and Ridley for life. Father and daughter argue about her deceased mother during the trip, causing Elliott to be distracted when a unicorn waltzes in front of their speeding car. It’s an unusual sequence that not only connects Ridley to the mystical creature and leaves them splattered in purple blood, it also sets up the rest of the story.

Upon arriving at the majestic estate in the forest, we are introduced to Odell’s wife Belinda (Tea Leoni) and their spoiled, entitled, obnoxious son Shepard (Will Poulter, MIDSOMMER), as well as the estate caretaker, Griff (Anthony Carrigan, “Barry”). It’s nice to see Ms. Leoni back, as it appears her last big screen appearance was in TOWER HEIST fourteen years ago (of course she starred in “Madam Secretary” for six of those years). There will likely be debates on the most memorable character, as Shepard is so over-the-top wacky that he becomes cartoonish, while Griff could easily have been yanked directly from a Mel Brooks film.

The key conflict in the story revolves around the all-out greed displayed by the Leopold clan versus the warnings from Ridley after she studies unicorn history and mythology via the tapestries of the Cloisters. Stuck in the middle is Elliott who wants to improve the relationship with his daughter while also appeasing the Leopold family. Scharfman includes quite a bit of comedy throughout, and when blended with the violent and gory horror elements, it actually seems to distract from what could have been a stunning cinematic experience, leaving us with a silly slasher sub-genre entry.

Richard E Grant delivers his usual strong performance and is given the actor’s dream of transforming from dying elderly man into the virile industry magnate of his youth. Will Poulter breaks away from his often-intense dramatic turns to flash his goofy comedy chops (snorting magical horn dust). The films kinda wastes Jenna Ortega’s talent, although she gets a nice line, “Philanthropy is just reputation-laundering for the oligarchy” highlighting the films anti-greed message. The argument could be made that Paul Rudd is a bit miscast, as we are never given any reason to believe he’s a strong or competent corporate attorney. There is enough to like here if fantasy-horror-comedy is your cup of tea, yet most will note the shaky GGI on the unicorns (improved for Act III), which pale in comparison to JP’s dinosaurs from thirty years ago

Opens on March 28, 2025

David Ferguson
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