Death of a Unicorn

If this movie took itself seriously, I'd give it a low score. But it's so obviously dumb fun mixed with satire, I feel like a low score would miss the point.

If you like dark humor, jump scares, and a bit of gore, I'd recommend it to you. The characters are more caricatures. The satire is not subtle. The humor is low brow. And I say all of this as QUALITIES of the movie.

The level of writing is very much like that of 80s or 90s era sitcoms. The performances are fine - adequate. I left the theater understanding that I saw a "bad" movie by most standards. But I didn't regret spending money on the ticket. To me, it's one of those "so bad, it's good" kind of movies.

If I have the opportunity to see it again, maybe on a streaming service, I will.

I watched an advanced screening of Death of a Unicorn (2025) this evening in theaters. The storyline follows a lawyer and his daughter on their way to his boss's mansion, where he hopes to secure a major promotion. However, when they accidentally hit and kill a unicorn on the drive there, what was supposed to be a routine business trip takes a bizarre and deadly turn.

Written and directed by Alex Scharfman in his feature debut, the film stars Jenna Ortega (Wednesday), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man), Anthony Carrigan (Gotham), Téa Leoni (Jurassic Park III), Will Poulter (The Maze Runner), and Richard E. Grant (Gosford Park).

This is the definition of Hollywood horror-slick, well-produced, and predictable. The writing has some unique elements but also reminded me of Resident Evil in terms of its sci-fi horror aspects. The CGI is top-notch, and the gore is well-executed, though at times it's a bit overdone. The horror elements are solid, with some entertaining kills and at least one effective jump scare. The cast is excellent across the board, but Anthony Carrigan, as Griff, steals the show. I wasn't a big fan of the ending, but it fits the Hollywood horror formula.

In conclusion, Death of a Unicorn is entertaining enough to keep your attention but won't make anyone's best horror list for 2025. I'd score it a 6/10 and recommend seeing it once.

The good- pretty cool lore and set up for the unicorns. Promising father-daughter set up, some good satire of the rich and powerful. Will Poulter is the best of the cast.

The bad- The father's character development felt very unearned, most of the movie I was praying for his bloody comeuppance. The rich family was too one-note for the amount of screen time they get. CGI was noticeably mediocre but understandable for a low budget movie.

With a rewrite or two, and some more money for CGI and action sequences, this could have been a sleeper surprise with genuine sequel potential as I really did like what they did with the unicorns. But because most all the characters were one-dimensional, the movie drags in the middle third as you wait for the inevitable. When it does finally happen, it's somewhat entertaining but let down by its poor CGI, so-so action sequences, and clunky plot resolution. The first two are forgivable given its budget, the third is not.

I don't regret watching this movie, I just wish that it had lived up to its potential.

This is movie that without any high expectations delivers. The actors are familiar, fun to watch, and each has their fun moments. Jenna Ortega does well carrying the center and works well with Rudd, who plays himself basically. Carrigan is totally underutilized, his facial expressions from his character are pretty much many of the best parts, Pouter does well also. That being said, there was only so much to do with the outline. It had to go harder in either direction honestly to level up. I would have liked it to up the crazy and absurdity all around, it's a movie about unicorns in modern life so why hold back, ratchet it up.

This movie could work with the strange premise and shoddy CGI. But, it requires characters to be likeable or at least relatable. That's the big issue here. It plays hard into the fame of Jenna Ortega. She's supposed to be the maiden with a pure heart. But, she comes off mores like an angst teenager with a terrible haircut. Paul Rudd is decent enough, but you find yourself getting annoyed with him immediately.

The Rich Family: take your typical evil greedy rich family and that's all you get here. They're ready to make a buck. That's their entire drive. There were hints of depth that were destroyed by misplaced comedy. When the father is standing, the son's immediately reaction was great. Then they went hokey.

In the end, this is a forgettable movie. The premise should carry it better, but the characters ruin it. The CGI is bad. But, you can let it pass if the characters are relatable. This movie fails here.