Though writer-director Alex Scharfman makes a giant swing together with his A24 horror comedy debut, Death of a Unicorn struggles to reside as much as its daring premise.
The film stars Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega as Elliot and Ridley Kinter, an estranged father and daughter who placed on a united entrance to get his family-oriented boss to signal a serious deal at his remoted Canadian mansion, situated on a mysterious nature protect. However after they hit a unicorn on the drive in, the pair and their rich hosts quickly turn out to be hunted by a pack of mythological beasts.
Because the movie’s ethical compass, Elliot urges the group to go away the creature be, however when the invention results in unprecedented miracle cures, the pharma-rich Leopolds immediately see greenback indicators.
However for a film with a virtually two-hour runtime and a bonkers title with the plot to match, the motion kicks off awfully late into the film. In the meantime, the laughs and gore are few and much in between, and the satirical component in the end takes a backseat to the daddy/daughter dynamic, which is heartfelt sufficient by itself… however we got here for the unicorn massacre.
With supporting performances from incomparable abilities like Téa Leoni, Richard E. Grant, Will Poulter, Sunita Mani and Anthony Carrigan, the caliber of comedy feels underutilized.
And whereas the movie touches on some severe points via a humorous lens — like habit, price-gouging and science deniers — the message felt uneven, hidden beneath a comedy horror that struggles to seek out its footing, regardless of its star-studded roster.
It’s laborious to not discover relevance in a film stuffed with generational strife in regards to the world we’re leaving to our youngsters, the place the wealthy get richer and the poor hold working their asses off for a shot at a cushty residing.
However watching wealthy individuals turn out to be the brutal victims of their very own greed is feeling much less and fewer like horror and extra like torture porn for the 99% within the age of Luigi Mangione.
Title: Loss of life of a Unicorn
Pageant: SXSW (World Premiere)
Distributor: A24
Launch date: March 28
Director-screenwriter: Alex Scharfman
Solid: Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega, Will Poulter, Téa Leoni, Richard E. Grant, Anthony Carrigan, Sunita Mani, Jessica Hynes, Stephen Park
Operating time: 1 hr 44 min
