Father-Daughter duo Elliott and Ridley hit a unicorn with their car and bring it to the wilderness retreat of a mega-wealthy pharmaceutical CEO.
Chuck says:
I doubt if anyone will be surprised by anything that happens in Alex Scharfman’s “Death of a Unicorn.” The characters act as you expect them to, and the plot progresses predictably. Still, that’s not to say it doesn’t have its moments, as the veteran cast invests a degree of enthusiasm that elevates the material and there are a couple of good jolts that will likely make you leap back in your seat. Yet, the film overstays its welcome, which certainly doesn’t help.
Though single-dad attorney Elliott Kintner (Paul Rudd) is a bit oblivious to his daughter Ridley’s (Jenna Ortega) true needs, you can’t say the guy isn’t trying. Intent on fulfilling the promise he made to his dying wife that their daughter would want for nothing, he’s sold his soul to a giant pharmaceutical CEO, Odell Leopold (Richard E. Grant). The billionaire is on his deathbed and, impressed with Kintner’s integrity, has invited him to his estate, nestled in the Canadian mountains. Seems he’s going to make the lawyer executor of his estate, who has brought along Ridley so that he might seem a bit more family oriented.
Yet, a fly in the ointment occurs when, while driving to the Leopold compound, which is surrounded by a private sanctuary, they hit and kill a unicorn…or at least think they have. Unsure what to do, Kintner puts the animal in the back of his car, who just happens to wake up at the most inopportune time. One thing leads to another, and it’s discovered the unicorn’s blood can instantly heal any ailment. Leopold, his wife Belinda (Tea Leoni) and son Shepherd (Will Poulter) begin to drool over the massive profits their company will reap due to this mishap.
Some mystical shenanigans communicate to other unicorns what’s happened and before you know it, they lay siege to the compound, the true nature of all trapped inside coming to the fore.
Again, no real surprises here yet what keeps the movie lively is the dark humor in Scharfman’s script. The extremes the Leopold’s go to in order to justify their exploitative practices are quite funny, their actions becoming more and more outlandish, as their justifications become more extreme. Grant, Leoni, and Poulter are more than up to the task in finding the humor in these monstrous narcissists, providing the film with some of its best moments. However, everyone takes a backseat to Anthony Carrigan (“Barry,” “Superman”) as the Leopold’s servant, Griff. Barely containing his character’s disdain for his employers, the actor gets more out of an eye roll than most could from a Shakespearean soliloquy.
As for the two leads, Rudd and Ortega are fine. Distraught, when necessary, which is most of the time, they’re convincing as the contentious father and daughter, never letting us forget they care for one another despite their argumentative behavior.
Surprisingly, the film’s special effects are cut-rate, and it shows. Once the ferocious unicorns show up, they’re only seen partially. On the occasions we do get a proper glimpse of them, it’s obvious why Scharfman adopts the less-is-more approach. Crudely executed, the creatures never appear convincing. I was waiting for the similarly unconvincing dwarves from the recent “Snow White” to show up and ride them off to the low-rent special effects house where they had all been rendered.
What with “Unicorn” being his directorial debut, Scharfman shows potential, yet also room for improvement. More imaginative plotting and pacing would be a good place to start as the third act is severely bloated. Then again, that seems to be the way of today’s cinematic world, so many modern movies mistaking excess for art.
2 1/2 Stars
