Death of a Unicorn

    JUMPING RIGHT IN, Death Of A Unicorn is a very unique film and a breath of fresh gore in the creature feature genre. A lot of elements come together to make this a fun film for many kinds of film fans and leaves you satisfied without feeling a need for any sequels. Not since The Meg 2: The Trench, back in 2023, has a creature feature been released for nationwide cinematic viewing, so it’s been almost 2 years since the release of a major motion creature feature . . . and it feels GREAT!

    THE OPINION of this humble film fan is that this is a must see in theatres and will be enjoyed long thereafter. It has the feeling of a creature feature that horror fans love putting on … to relax. The casting is perfect with amazing chemistry, the acting is superb (a reflection of the casting), the production is top notch (especially for a creature feature), the writing is as sophisticated as it should be for a creature feature dealing in such fantasy, the story is surprisingly fresh, and the gore is “gorious”!

    THE CASTING consists of Paul Rudd, no stranger to light horror being a new face for the revamped Ghostbusters franchise, Jenna Ortega who is undoubtedly the most impactful scream queen of recent years, Will Poulter coming off his big Marvel debut in 2023’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3, and a few other notables. Paul Rudd is also no stranger to darker films, having portrayed a sociopath in 2018’s Mute and then as a spy in the historical film The Catcher Was A Spy, from that same year. Considering all of the dark roles and projects Jenna Ortega has undertaken in recent years, one going so far as to be “triggering” and controversial through the stream king Netflix, this is actually a light step back for the young actress. That being said, there is still a lot of blood, gore, and horror for her to feel right at home with this story.

    Tea Leoni makes appearance as the matriarch of the film’s antagonistic rich family. A veteran actressof renown and success, from her early days performing in A League Of Their Own (1992) and Bad Boys (1995), to working in successes like the comedy Tower Heist (2011) and the show Madam Secretary (2014-2019), she now brings that experience to a film in need of a careful balance between serious urgency and subtle undertones of silliness. Will Poulter has had much success in comedy, action, and horror … all of which are present in this film and does a perfect job portraying his character who develops a very tricky evolution throughout the film.

    THE OVERVIEW of the film is nothing but good news. There have been films that allude to the unicorn as being a subject for horror, but nothing as so direct as this film. In 2011’s Cabin In The Woods, and then again in 2023’s film SHAZAM! Fury of the Gods, the unicorn is portrayed in all of its original lore and gore. Yet now, thanks to Writer/Director Alex Scharfman, we have a film strictly dedicated to the true horror roots of . . . The Unicorn! And being that this is Alex’s directorial and writing debut for a major motion picture, I’m pleasantly surprised at how well he has done. Though he does have experience working a lot with Amazon studios, and EVEN helped bring Art the Clown to life by working on All Hallows Eve (2013) and Terrifier (2016), this is his first project for nationwide cinematic release as either writer or director. In this case, both.

    There is a great balance of horror and comedy to compliment such an outlandish creature feature and boasts an image of these unicorns in a way that is both benevolent and inescapably haunting. It won’t leave your imagination for some time. Not to mention the beautiful locations selected for filming help bring the viewer into a feeling of mystical escape among the backdrop of white tipped mountain ranges and pine green blankets among the valley.

    STAND OUT features of this film come in the form of an actor, whose star is getting even brighterwith this film, and few fun facts. In the film we see actor Anthony Carrigan play the rich family butler, Griff. Now, normally the butler is a cliché roll filled with “the butler did it” or as a sacrificial character in horror films, but here the butler character plays a few important roles . . . that you’ll have to see to find out. I don’t do spoilers. But this actor took to studying works of Charlie Chaplin to prep for the role and it paid off in his performance. His character is a bottle of aggravation and nerves due to his service as butler to the rich family in the film, but he has a tipping point that comes off as comedic and relieving. To better control his body language for such a change in performance with the character, he implemented what he found studying Charlie. It transferred beautifully and was my favorite character of the film! There’s also the fun fact that Paul Rudd has gone on record before claiming to have seen a real unicorn when visiting Scottland and that it terrified him! None of the cast have worked together on any film project together but their chemistry together is synonymous with a group that have collaborated for years.

    IN SUMMARY, this is the first creature feature to come out in a few years and is the best creature feature I’ve seen in theatres since Krampus (2015). Everything comes together to make a great experience and is worth $10 for a ticket on a day you aren’t doing anything. It will also be worth putting in your collection if you have one. The ending is a bit ambiguous in its final seconds but doesn’t leave it on a cliff hanger. Alex (director and writer) doesn’t really leave a clean opening for a sequel but if one does happen it will either be done by an amazing storyteller or it will bomb. It is a great stand-alone creature feature with comedic undertones but follows through with it’s horror aspect through and through. Move over Deadpool, you’re not the only one wanting to ride the unicorn now!