What if Wednesday Addams and Marvel’s Ant-Man do a movie together? Sounds funny! In reality, both actors have starred in a fantasy horror movie, Amazon Prime’s “Death of a Unicorn,” which was released recently. Let’s see whether it’s a hit or a miss.
The Plot
Elliot Kintner, aka Paul Rudd, by profession, is a corporate lawyer living with his only daughter, Ridley. They drive to this weekend getaway from his office in a lavish estate located within the mountains. On the way, they accidentally hit a unicorn like a half-dead situation. The Unicorn’s horn has magical healing properties. He decides to bring it to his client, pharmaceutical billionaire and estate owner, Odell Leopold.
Well, the family was celebrating the treasure, but his spoiled son, Shepard, sees misuse. He thought of grinding to invent a cancer medicine. But the situation turns upside down when the Unicorn parents seek hardcore vengeance. Will they survive the monsters?
Cast and Characters
Starting with the protagonists, Paul Rudd as Elliot Kinter did decently. He is monotonous, torn between his career ambition & his daughter’s morale. Further, Jenna Ortega, who plays the Ridley character, was more empathetic to the dead Unicorn and ethical in her actions. They, as a family, don’t leave a strong impact.
As for supporting characters, it’s great to see strong actors like Richard E. Grant, Tea Leoni, Anthony Carrigan, and Will Polutar in the same frame. All of them are highlighted in the film. They ruled their arcs as rich, obsessed, and sardonic people. Next, we have Sunitha Mani and Stephen Park, scientists and real culprits in exploiting the Horn.
Unique tone in a Monstrous Setting
Death by Unicorn brings a very unique fantasy creature that we see in fairy tales. In fact, we imagine these creatures as kind & girly vibes, but if you see the level of atrocity and violence, your perspective shifts. Another plus is that, film has an ensemble cast to entertain. Although they all have big, monstrous, gory settings throughout, it’s under a pretty common element: Pharmaceutical greed exploiting nature. This makes it quite predictable. Also, the familial bond between father and daughter is direly missing. It feels like a revenge game, where these characters hide and kill, nothing interesting.
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Basic VFX and Music
The film can do much better with VFX, as it mostly depends on Unicorns. The script has a lot of unexplored elements, like a Unicorn community, depth into animal exploitation, or an empathy touch. Death By Unicorn overly relies on its primary theme and sticks the VFX only to that resonance. As for music and sound effects, they don’t add any value.
Conclusion
If you love Jenna Ortega in her gothic era but with a modern mix, then add “Death By Unicorn” to your watchlist. By the first 30-40 minutes, you will understand that the film has very little scope to explore. The lack of proper direction and visuals, despite a good cast, is evident. So, as time passes, you can watch it this weekend with your friends.
IMDb: 5.9/10 Rotten Tomatoes: 54% Newsslash Ratings: 3.6/5
Written By: Meghana Pinninti