Death of a Unicorn

 

“It’s an opportunity for immortality.”

Mythic, manic and messy, Death of a Unicorn is a fantasy horror comedy that needs more magical moments, more gruesome gore, and more laugh-out-loud moments and instead feels underbaked and rushed, whilst still delivering some entertainment that’s only surface deep. 

Discussion Points:

I’m a little bit disappointed with this. The funniest parts where in the trailers and the film feels underbaked. It’s an obvious debut that feels like it needed a tighter direction. Really fun concept and a solid cast, but the pacing is off, characters are underdeveloped and the world’s lore could’ve used more fleshing out as well. Not as funny as I was hoping, not as sharp in commentary as it could’ve been and not as brutal and gross as I was expecting. Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega make for a believable father-daughter duo, but I wish we had a little more time understanding their relationship. Richard E. Grant is chewing scenery but underused, as is Anthony Carrigan. But Will Poulter steals every scene he is in and is the easy MVP! The unicorn VFX are impressive and overall the action is well executed. Ultimately, not a bad film, but one I was hoping for more from and was left underwhelmed by.