Death of a Unicorn Embraces its Absurdity and Delivers Bloody Good Mythical Fun

Death of a Unicorn

★ ★ ★

I didn’t expect to like Death of a Unicorn as much as I did. It’s a campy, dark comedy, fantasy horror film. This movie works, because it doesn’t try to do too much. It knows it’s not important and seems comfortable with its role as mindless entertainment. It’s just a film about a dad and his daughter whose SUV slams into a unicorn in deep forest roads on their way to his boss’ mansion.

Elliot (Paul Rudd) and his daughter Ridley (Jenna Ortega) are recovering from losing his wife and her mother. Elliot is heading to the mansion, because his boss Odell (Richard E. Grant) is on his death bed and he’s going to be taking the corporate reigns. The meeting is so Odell can show his wife Belinda (Téa Leoni) and son Shepard (Will Poulter) that Elliot is of good moral character. The dead unicorn in the back of Elliot’s car might put that in jeopardy.

Left to Right: Jessica Hynes, Téa Leoni, Will Poulter, Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega and Anthony Carrigan
© 2025 A24

Here’s the thing with the unicorns in this film. They can be vengeful, violent creatures. And they know when one of theirs is in peril, or worse. They’re also very capable killers, and this movie doesn’t hold back on gory unicorn impalements.

Odell’s company is pharmaceutical, presumably a member of “Big Pharma.” Conflicts of interest arise when it’s discovered that unicorn blood, and powdered unicorn horns, can heal virtually anything. From acne to cancer – nearly immediately. You can imagine the position this puts Elliot in when Odell makes a miraculous recovery.

Jenna Ortega encounters a grey unicorn
© 2025 A24

Ridley wants to keep the unicorns safe, Elliot wants to save his job, and Odell wants to capitalize on the scarce unicorn blood. There are plenty of jabs at irresponsible corporate greed and irresponsible rich people behaving badly. In the context of the film’s dumb comedy, it works.

At the heart of the movie is Elliot repairing his relationship with Ridley. Surprisingly, this doesn’t get too campy and finds a nice, somewhat realistic conclusion – amidst the chaos.

Jenna Ortega as Ridley
© 2025 A24

I wish they did more with Griff (Anthony Carrigan), Odell’s personal chef. Carrigan is a master at playing quirky characters and has incredible oddball comedic timing. He’s fun to watch, and I wish they let him loose more than they did. I’ve been a fan since his turn as NoHo Hank in HBO’s Barry. Letting Carrigan off the leash could’ve turned this from a weird romp into something wickedly unforgettable.

This is a fun movie. It’s more fun if you don’t think too much about it. Sort of like a carnival ride: don’t look at the structure, just enjoy the rickety adventure.