Death of a Unicorn - Something Strange This Way Comes

For rent on Apple TV and Amazon Prime

    One phrase I have found regularly useful when discussing some movies is "familiar yet fresh." This term describes movies with plots and narrative elements that have been done many times before, but succeed in presenting them in a way that hasn't been explored before. Consider films like Cabin in the Woods, which puts a fun twist on the classic slasher genre, or the action masterpiece Dredd, which utilizes a similar chlosterphobic hostile setting not unlike The Raid: Redemption or Die Hard, to name a few examples. In my experience, this notion is the best way to explore and discover true originality: it's not about what story you're telling; it's how you choose to tell it. 

    Such is the case with today's subject, Death of a Unicorn, the latest offering from the little production company that can, A24, arguably the cornerstone of original modern cinema, albeit mostly within the horror genre. While their latest release is essentially a scarier version of weird creature features like Harry and the Hendersons and Purple People Eater, the film successfully fuses two clashing tones (family-issue-dramatic-comedy plus gruesome-monster-invasion) into a single experience that I'm confident hasn't been considered before, at least not to the extent this film has taken it. In any case, enough goodwill was built up for me to appreciate and enjoy this weird experience. 

    The story follows a private business lawyer named Elliot (Paul Rudd) and his young daughter, Ridley (Jenna Ortega), on their way to a private mountain mansion for a weekend retreat. The mansion is owned by Elliot's boss, a pharmaceutical mogul named Odell (Richard E. Grant), who is on the cusp of death and needs Eliot's help sorting out his family affairs. On the way to the mansion, Elliot and Ridley hit something with their car. What they find is unusual and highly unexpected: a real-life Unicorn. Not sure how to handle the strange situation, and not wanting to get in trouble with the wildlife authorities, they take the presumably dead creature to the mansion, whereupon they are found out by the rest of the family. Then, when it's discovered that the Unicorn's biological components contain miraculous healing properties, they collectively decide to explore and prepare for massive profits with their fantastical discovery. Little do they know that something far more sinister and dangerous awaits them. 

    This film is insane in the best possible way. It takes a familiar fantastical element and plays with it in a way that feels simultaneously realistic and far-fetched. Although given the absurd, non-funny ridiculousness of the modern world, that's saying a lot! 

    A delightful surprise comes from the young and talented Jenna Ortega. She has incredible energy and succeeds in carrying much of the weight she's tasked with handling. I haven't seen her in her starring role as Wednesday Addams on Netflix yet, but this might finally get me started watching it. 

    My only real nitpick with the film is the moments of graphic violence. While it is foreshadowed correctly in the film and justified within the story's internal logic, I can't help but feel like it would have benefited more from fewer on-camera depictions of gore and utilized more power of suggestion. At least that's how I might have preferred it. 

    Death of a Unicorn is not for everyone, but if you're willing to turn your brain off for a little while and allow the strangeness of it all to take over, you might have a better experience than you thought. 

    Give it a shot. 

Ladies & gentlemen, I am TheNorm; thank you all for reading.