A24’s Death of a Unicorn is a limp one-note horror film that can’t really reach escape velocity even with the performances from Richard E Grant, Jenna Ortega, and Paul Rudd. The initial concept, that an estranged father and daughter are brought together after accidentally striking a unicorn on their way to a reclusive billionaire’s estate in the woods feels weirdly similar to the setup for Hunter Schaffer’s collab with Dan Stevens in Cuckoo, while also simultaneously cribbing on the kowai/kawaii of Poppy Playtime and Abigail.
The movie never really advances beyond that initial concept of rich people blithely and effortlessly reshaping the situation using NGO/corporatespeak sophistry to turn things to their advantage, while Téa Leoni (JURASSIC PARK III???) and Will Poulter (Maze Runner, Chronicles of Narnia??, Midsommar???, Guardians of the Galaxy????, the Revenant?????) do their best White Lotus impressions.
Mostly, the action sequences are homages to classic 80s and 90s monster movies like Jurassic Park and Alien. And when they’re not that they’re Jenna Ortega doing her best to breathe life into some medieval tapestry lore to prove to the inhabitants of this home that they’re doing something wrong. Paul Rudd plays a flaccid, gormless lawyer really well, but it involves him sort of changing tack on a whim and pushing his gut out in a nonthreatening way. Probably the most interesting thing about this movie was the trailer for another Paul Rudd movie which is billed as a horror film version of I Love You, Man (which I think is just the male version of A Simple Favor).
One quick note: kind of thought the vaping was going to be a bigger deal. Half a Babadook.
