“Philanthropy is just reputation laundering for the oligarchy”

Theme, the high arching message that artists aim to communicate through their works, be it overt or subliminal. If the creative choices a director makes are the “how” of a movie, be it the visual representations, the positioning of the camera, the music that sets a mood, then the theme must surely be the “what,” as in what is the film all about. Our film studies focus this week is all about the topic of theme, which A Short Guide to Writing About Film reminds us “not strictly speaking, the moral or message of the movie, they are the large and small ideas that help explain the actions and events in it.” Viewers can marvel at the sight of Superman flying through metropolis, being entertained for hours as he battles Lex Luther, but at its core the story is about morality and how kindness is an act of heroism be it small interactions with fellow citizens or saving the planet from certain destruction. But let’s examine a different film, A24’s latest fantasy inspired horror release, Death of A Unicorn by director Alex Scharfman, to see what themes can be plucked from this interesting take on the “kill the rich” story.

Death of A Unicorn focuses on the father-daughter dynamic of Elliot and Ridley, played respectively by Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega as they navigate a weekend retreat at the mountain mega-lodge of the billionaire Leopold family whose pharmaceutical empire has keyed in on Elliot as a potential proxy for the family office. After a delay at the airport leaves Elliot rushing to meet his benefactors, his distracted driving literally rams into the film’s propelling story, hitting a unicorn and causing the titular death or so we think. Dumbfounded as they are to discover the mythical creature, they manage to bundle the roadkill into the trunk of the car to minimize any further delay.

When we finally meet the Leopold family played in humorous degrees by a Téa Leoni (mom, Belinda), Will Poulter (son, Shepard) and Richard E. Grant (father, Odell), we immediately find that, as is often the case, wealth does not create the best humanity has to offer. They are needy and repellent, yelling commands at their staff and thinking they are somehow above the world. After some rattling in the car forces Elliot to confess to the hit and run, it is soon discovered that the unicorn’s blood has all-encompassing healing powers, solving acne to near sightedness. This forces the hand of dying patriarch Odell to shoot the newfound wonder drug directly into his veins to cure his terminal cancer. Hours later, what is a newly healed pharma emperor with his new lease on life? Strip every remaining fiber of the animal for as much money possible of course. However, it turns out this isn’t the only unicorn in the forest, just a baby in fact, and mom and dad have a different perspective on who should be stripped down for parts, mayhem and bloodshed soon follow.

Death of a Unicorn is not the most subtle of films when it comes to sharing its point of view practically telegraphing what the film is all about in the first act. In clear establishing shots, Eliot and Ridley are seen driving to their hosts destination by entering the Leopold Forest Reserve, an awe-inspiring natural wonderland assumingly purchased on behalf of the family that somehow, though protected, is at the disposable whims of this empire who have the ability to build their McMansion smack dab in the center of, no matter it’s natural or cultural value. As Odell says, “this is Blackfoot land.”. The wealthy have no limitations; they will drain the beauty from nature, and society, for personal gain and greed. Lather, rinse, repeat. Which is why they must all be killed. Henceforth our blood thirsty villains, or are they heroes, in the form of menacing adult unicorns who maim, stab and tear apart the entire Leopold family and accomplices one at a time as soon as they think they are now in possession of the elixir of immortality.

As a clear satire on the real-life Sackler family, owners of Purdue Pharma the maker of Oxycotin, whose despicable actions of hooking millions of individuals on opioids made them billionaires multiple times over, Death of A Unicorn gives us a fantastical deliverance by spearing the guts right out of each guilty individual one-by-one. No amount of philanthropy be it vaccinating refugees as seen in the film, or donating to cultural institutions as the Sackler’s had, can spare you from the wrath of consequences. Unfortunately, the real world does not have crazed murder unicorns, and we must be satisfied by billion-dollar settlements and reputational ruin.