{"id":3271,"date":"2025-04-01T15:04:47","date_gmt":"2025-04-01T15:04:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/?p=3271"},"modified":"2025-04-03T18:18:55","modified_gmt":"2025-04-03T18:18:55","slug":"2025s-most-unexpectedly-gruesome-movie-gleefully-sprays-blood-and-guts-all-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/01\/2025s-most-unexpectedly-gruesome-movie-gleefully-sprays-blood-and-guts-all-over\/","title":{"rendered":"2025\u2019s most unexpectedly gruesome movie gleefully sprays blood and guts all over"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\"Jenna\t<\/div>
Death of a Unicorn offers a fun premise delivered with heavy Spielberg-esque nostalgia (Picture: A24)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Death of a Unicorn<\/a> is undoubtedly one of the more imaginative and gory films you\u2019ll see in 2025<\/a>, silly and savage in equal measure \u2013 even if it can\u2019t quite live up to the promise of its juicy premise.<\/p>\n

The A24 comedy<\/a>–horror<\/a>, written and directed by Alex Scharfman in his feature-length debut, has attracted a star-studded cast led by Paul Rudd<\/a> and Jenna Ortega<\/a> thanks to its wacky tale of corporate greed and magical unicorns.<\/p>\n

When Elliot (Rudd) and his teenage daughter Ridley (Ortega) accidentally injure a unicorn foal on the way to the estate of Elliot\u2019s sickly but pharmaceutically wealthy boss Odell Leopold (Richard E Grant), they discover the healing properties of its blood spatter, which fixes her acne and his allergies and long-sightedness.<\/p>\n

Ridley is also left with a mental link to the unicorns after she touches the foal\u2019s horn and experiences visions on a cosmic level, causing her to worry over its treatment.<\/p>\n

However, the cancer-stricken Odell and his grotesque family \u2013 luxury wife Belinda (T\u00e9a Leoni) and their vacuous son Shepard (Will Poulter, having the best time of anyone) \u2013 very quickly see how they can benefit thanks to the medicinal power of these mythical beasts.<\/p>\n

Or as Shepard crows: \u2018They\u2019re going to hate us on the non-profit circuit \u2013 nice knowing you, cancer charities, am I right?\u2019<\/p>\n

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Pictured: Paul Rudd as Elliot Kintner and Jenna Ortega as Ridley Kintner. See PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews. A24 Films. Picture credit should read: Curzon. All Rights Reserved. NOTE TO EDITORS: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews.\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_245793675-7b11.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega play a father and daughter who hit a unicorn foal with their car (Picture: A24)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Death of a Unicorn is reminiscent of both <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/jurassic-park\/\">Jurassic Park<\/a> and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in its approach to its unbelievable central creatures and the intoxicating level of their extreme desirability to humans, despite imminent threat.<\/p>\n<p>It has lashings of Spielberg in its nostalgic monster approach \u2013 we know the greedy baddies will have their comeuppance and that tension will be built by sound, shadow and our hero being charged in a car at some point \u2013 but there\u2019s a frivolous edge to it all.<\/p>\n<section class=\"metro-comment-cta\">\n<div class=\"metro-comment-cta__inner\"><span class=\"metro-comment-cta__text-wrap\"><title>Comment now<\/title><span class=\"metro-comment-cta__text\">Will you be watching Death of a Unicorn?<\/span><\/span><a class=\"metro-comment-cta__button\" href=\"#metro-comments-container\">Comment Now<\/a><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p>After all, Leoni\u2019s Belinda utters the immortal line, \u2018Not to be a size queen, as they say, but that horn was rather girthsome\u2019, with undisguised lust, while one of Shepard\u2019s most resolute lines in the whole film is that \u2018gloss is gauche\u2019 when it comes to printing photographs.<\/p>\n<p>The movie\u2019s carnage is unexpectedly graphic and disgusting, even with Ridley\u2019s warning ringing in our ears that unicorns are a \u2018bloodthirsty and vengeful beast\u2019 after she digs up historical research.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"431\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"article-image wp-image-22826198 lazyload\" alt=\"Undated film still from Death of A Unicorn. Pictured: Paul Rudd as Elliot Kintner and Jenna Ortega as Ridley Kintner. See PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews. A24 Films. Picture credit should read: Curzon. All Rights Reserved. NOTE TO EDITORS: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews.\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_245793737-fbef.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>The film tackles humanity’s yearning to benefit from the gifts of nature as the unicorn’s powers are revealed (Picture: A24)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>We are then shown that this is very much the case, as these massive creatures snarl and growl, bare their fangs and curl their ominous grey tongues while disembowelling and destroying the humans who have done them wrong.<\/p>\n<p>Although there is humour in the deaths, I would have welcomed a little more variety away from people being impaled on unicorn horns \u2013 although there a head is cracked under a hoof like a coconut, while someone else is literally torn in two.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s also plenty of literal guts, with one hole left by a horn in a body so big Elliot can peer right through it before the victim\u2019s intestines start falling out.<\/p>\n<p>It is satisfying to see the morally bankrupt answer for their crimes in a world right now where this seems more like a fantasy, even if the payoff isn\u2019t quite the slam-dunk expected.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"435\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"article-image wp-image-22826194 lazyload\" alt=\"Undated film still from Death of A Unicorn. Pictured: Tea Leoni as Belinda Leopold, Richard E Grant as Odell Leopold, Will Poulter as Shepard Leopold and Paul Rudd as Elliot Kintner. See PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews. A24 Films. Picture credit should read: Curzon. All Rights Reserved. NOTE TO EDITORS: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature SHOWBIZ Film Reviews.\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_245793694-7424.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>The morally bankrupt Leopold family, who employ Rudd’s Elliot, is ready to capitalise despite urgent warnings of the danger from Ridley (Ortega) (Picture: A24)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Death of a Unicorn is unsubtle if entertaining in its social commentary, but ultimately none of the characters have the depth required \u2013 even Ortega\u2019s Ridley spends most of her time wavering between pouting and panicking.<\/p>\n<p>Although it\u2019s somewhat refreshing to demonstrate such a clearly broken family dynamic, Elliot is so spineless that it\u2019s hard to root for him in the relationship he\u2019s supposed to be rebuilding with his daughter.<\/p>\n<p>Grant regurgitates <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2023\/11\/09\/barry-keoghans-extreme-saltburn-scenes-are-most-shocking-in-years-19794598\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the eccentric flavour he provided in Saltburn<\/a> although with more of a vicious, unicorn steak-eating edge, thanks to his instincts for comedy \u2013 although there\u2019s less of a reward, character-wise, to work with here.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile Poulter is weirdly lovable as Shepard, who\u2019s always ready to provide buzzword salad (his \u2018diversified portfolio of entrepreneurial activities\u2019, for instance) as he struts around in his chino shorts offering nothing else of value.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"431\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"article-image wp-image-22826201 lazyload\" alt=\"This image released by A24 shows Will Poulter in a scene from "Death of a Unicorn." (A24 via AP)\" loading=\"lazy\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/SEI_245128011-f290.jpg\">\t<\/div><figcaption>Death of a Unicorn descends into a bloodbath as everyone battles it out for survival (pictured is Will Poulter as Shepard) (Picture: A24 via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Death of a Unicorn is also particularly evocative of its clear inspirations when one irritated unicorn is prowling around outside, its fearsome jaws shown in silhouette against the tent Odell\u2019s employees set up on site (The Lost World: Jurassic Park), while a hunting party later traipses through the misty woods in search of their creatures (E.T.).<\/p>\n<p>Although it\u2019s unlikely to enter the cinematic canon next to such greats, Death of a Unicorn is still an entertainingly silly romp if not as sharp as you\u2019d hope to truly stick the satirical landing.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Death of a Unicorn is in UK cinemas on Friday April 4. It’s in US cinemas now.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Got a story?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">If you\u2019ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\">Metro.co.uk<\/a> entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/submit-stuff\/\">Submit Stuff<\/a> page – we\u2019d love to hear from you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Death of a Unicorn offers a fun premise delivered with heavy Spielberg-esque nostalgia (Picture: A24) Death of a Unicorn is undoubtedly one of the more imaginative and gory films you\u2019ll see in 2025, silly and savage in equal measure \u2013 even if it can\u2019t quite live up to the promise of its juicy premise. The A24 comedy–horror, written and directed by Alex Scharfman in his feature-length debut, has attracted a star-studded cast led by Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega thanks … <a href=\"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/01\/2025s-most-unexpectedly-gruesome-movie-gleefully-sprays-blood-and-guts-all-over\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> “2025\u2019s most unexpectedly gruesome movie gleefully sprays blood and guts all over”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3273,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3271"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3271"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3271\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3279,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3271\/revisions\/3279"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3273"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3271"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3271"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.isshicare.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3271"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}