SYNOPSIS: A father (Paul Rudd) and daughter (Jenna Ortega) accidentally hit and kill a unicorn while en route to a weekend retreat, where his billionaire boss (Richard E. Grant) seeks to exploit the creature's miraculous curative properties.

MOVIE REVIEW:

For sure, this is not the live-action version of My Little Pony. In fact it’s so bloody and violence that you might need to change your opinion of a unicorn from now on.

The story begins with a pair of father-and-daughter, corporate lawyer Elliot ( Paul Rudd) and her rebellious teenager, Ridley (Jenny Ortega) as they make their way to the Leopolds' estate as Elliot is chosen to take over the running of the business of his wealthy boss, Odell Leopold (Richard E. Grant). Perhaps distracted by both pollen and his daughter, Elliot accidentally hit a unicorn foal along the way.

In a hurry to get to the Leopolds, Elliot decides to leave the supposedly dead foal in his car while Ridley experiences strange cosmic visions after touching the foal’s horn earlier on. Miraculously, they found out that the unicorn’s blood also has the ability to cure any sickness including Odell’s cancer and Ridley’s acne.

Despite being from A24 which is an outfit known for its stylistic releases, Death of a Unicorn is an easy watch or should we daringly says not a title that offers any meaningful messages. The message of Odell’s pharmaceutical company greediness of reaping the healing properties of the horn frequently gave way to the unstoppable bloodshed. At least there is the strained father-and-daughter relationship that deserves some redemption in the end.

There are indeed moments of mild jump scares and plenty of silly shocking deaths that will make any B-movie fan proud. Making his feature film debut is Alex Scharfman, the writer and director behind Death of a Unicorn. There is a minimal satire element to his debut outing though unfortunately it’s overshadowed by the average narrative and “Jurassic World” treatment.

Téa Leoni who has not make a movie for a long time appears as the matriarch, Will Poulter plays her nitwit yet ambitious son and Anthony Carrigan plays their long-suffering butler. It’s a solid cast all right. And then not forgetting the likeable Rudd and Ortega to add to the impressive casting.

What doesn’t really sit well though is the less than convincing CGI. The idea of having monstrous looking unicorns is somewhat creative but you can’t have them running around like inappropriately sized horses. If you are expecting a smart creature flick from A24. I’m afraid no. But you are in the mood for an extensively cruel movie which feature countless deaths by piercing horns, you are in for a treat.

MOVIE RATING:

Review by Linus Tee

SYNOPSIS: A father (Paul Rudd) and daughter (Jenna Ortega) accidentally hit and kill a unicorn while en route to a weekend retreat, where his billionaire boss (Richard E. Grant) seeks to exploit the creature's miraculous curative properties.

MOVIE REVIEW:

For sure, this is not the live-action version of My Little Pony. In fact it’s so bloody and violence that you might need to change your opinion of a unicorn from now on.

The story begins with a pair of father-and-daughter, corporate lawyer Elliot ( Paul Rudd) and her rebellious teenager, Ridley (Jenny Ortega) as they make their way to the Leopolds' estate as Elliot is chosen to take over the running of the business of his wealthy boss, Odell Leopold (Richard E. Grant). Perhaps distracted by both pollen and his daughter, Elliot accidentally hit a unicorn foal along the way.

In a hurry to get to the Leopolds, Elliot decides to leave the supposedly dead foal in his car while Ridley experiences strange cosmic visions after touching the foal’s horn earlier on. Miraculously, they found out that the unicorn’s blood also has the ability to cure any sickness including Odell’s cancer and Ridley’s acne.

Despite being from A24 which is an outfit known for its stylistic releases, Death of a Unicorn is an easy watch or should we daringly says not a title that offers any meaningful messages. The message of Odell’s pharmaceutical company greediness of reaping the healing properties of the horn frequently gave way to the unstoppable bloodshed. At least there is the strained father-and-daughter relationship that deserves some redemption in the end.

There are indeed moments of mild jump scares and plenty of silly shocking deaths that will make any B-movie fan proud. Making his feature film debut is Alex Scharfman, the writer and director behind Death of a Unicorn. There is a minimal satire element to his debut outing though unfortunately it’s overshadowed by the average narrative and “Jurassic World” treatment.

Téa Leoni who has not make a movie for a long time appears as the matriarch, Will Poulter plays her nitwit yet ambitious son and Anthony Carrigan plays their long-suffering butler. It’s a solid cast all right. And then not forgetting the likeable Rudd and Ortega to add to the impressive casting.

What doesn’t really sit well though is the less than convincing CGI. The idea of having monstrous looking unicorns is somewhat creative but you can’t have them running around like inappropriately sized horses. If you are expecting a smart creature flick from A24. I’m afraid no. But you are in the mood for an extensively cruel movie which feature countless deaths by piercing horns, you are in for a treat.

MOVIE RATING:

Review by Linus Tee