A24’s Latest ‘Death of a Unicorn’ Crafts a Tight and Twisted Dark Comedy —SXSW

A24 is in a unique position in film culture. They produce critical darlings, gain awards recognition, and are starting a push to appeal to larger audiences. Long gone are the days when they were the little start-up indie label that could. Now, they are Best Picture winners thrice over. Everything Everywhere All At Once was a smash hit that surprised everyone. Last year, Civil War, their largest reported budget film at $50 million, was their first legitimate attempt at a blockbuster action vehicle (the box office gross was a very respectable $127 million). What if I told you America’s most charming comedic actor plays father to a burgeoning star and made a dark comedy version of Jurassic Park? And it all works? You would get A24’s latest attempt at commercial success — Death of a Unicorn.  

Death of a Unicorn starts with father and daughter Elliot (Paul Rudd, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania) and Ridley (Jenna Ortega, Wednesday) aboard a plane waiting for takeoff. Ridley falls asleep on Elliot’s shoulder in a very heartwarming moment. Unfortunately, the moment doesn’t last long. Elliot drops some important work papers and can’t flag down a flight attendant to help pick them up. So he must choose: either leave the papers on the floor or disturb his daughter’s sleep. As a metaphor for the rest of the film, Elliot picks work over his daughter, jerks away to retrieve the papers, and Ridley comically smacks her head on the armrest. From this incident, their less-than-stellar relationship becomes apparent. 

As they drive to their ultimate destination, the tension between the two radiates. Ridley’s fiery hair and grunge-lite aura are in sharp contrast to Elliot’s conservative Banana Republic aesthetic. While cruising the scenic landscape, we learn the matriarch of the family has passed away. Eventually, an argument ensues, and Elliot becomes distracted while driving. With his eyes off the road, he plows into a mysterious, white, horse-like creature. Though struck, the creature does not die. To put the animal out of its misery, Elliot repeatedly strikes the creature with a tire iron, splattering purple blood over his and his daughter’s faces.

Choosing not to leave the animal on the side of the road, the family hulls the perceived dead creature to Elliot’s boss’ home. Once it is discovered that the blood contains magical powers, his boss Odell Leoplod (Richard E. Grant, Saltburn), wife Belinda (Téa Leoni, Madam Secretary) and son Sheppard (Will Poulter, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3) look to synthesize its blood to sell a healing elixir to grow their already massive fortune. Ridley tries everything in her power to stop them while Elliot keeps furthering their plans in the hopes of furthering his career, creating a larger fissure in their already strained relationship. 

That creature, as the title and trailer give away, is, in fact, a unicorn. But what the trailer does hide is how dark things get on our journey. On the one hand, this story is, ultimately, about a father and daughter learning to rediscover their love for each other and move beyond the loss of mother/wife. On the other hand, we get thrilling action and satirical comedy. 

As the headlining stars, Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega are a solid parent-child combo. There is rarely a time when Rudd fails to deliver the funny, though his charm is slightly dimmed to give Ortega a bit more shine. Ortega continues to develop her dramatic chops when the moment calls for it. Her reigning title of Gen Z’s Scream Queen is put to good use as Death of a Unicorn offers harrowing scenes of action intertwined with jumpscares typically reserved for the horror genre. The film comes down to nature fighting back against man. When multiple unicorns enter the story, they attack everyone in the Leopold compound. If they titled the movie Death By a Unicorn, that may have given away how gory the proceedings get. This one may be too bloody for younger audiences.

Even though the film is star-powered by Rudd and Ortega, Will Poulter (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3) steals scene after scene with his impeccable comedic timing and razor-sharp line delivery. As Sheppard, he is part trust fund baby, part pompous schemer looking to win the favor of his father. As the film reaches its conclusion, Poulter never loses his steam. Richard E. Grant and Téa Leoni are another great combo. Their high energy as a couple that is only committed to power and money fits right in the moment of, say, other billionaires of today with the same motivations. Writer/director Alex Scharfman, in his directorial debut, offers a solid first offering. With big personalities, it can be difficult to keep actors within the margins. Scharfman holds everything together, even if the story and its outcome are predictable in spots. Though the premise itself is a swing (magical, murderous unicorns afoot), that is where the uniqueness of the storytelling ends. There was more room to be visually stylistic and riskier in the story choices. With the attached big names and interesting concepts, don’t be surprised if Death of a Unicorn is A24’s next big hit.

Death of a Unicorn releases in theaters March 28.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars