Robert Eggers has become renowned for the way he weaves folklore into the heart of his stories. Every piece of his set is designed with historical accuracy in mind, even when reality has to be shifted to allow horror elements into the narrative. Eggers has become the gold standard of research-led filmmaking, a feat that inspired Alex Scharfman, writer and director of A24’s latest horror offering, Death of a Unicorn. Having access to Eggers’ notebooks, Scarfman decided to place a huge amount of focus on the lore surrounding unicorns and how they were viewed by society in the past. So much of what is seen on screen is real artifacts and based on beliefs held by people in the past. It is because of this that Scharfman is able to bring something that feels so fantastical into the real world in a believable way.
‘Death of a Unicorn’ Sets Itself Up as Satire

Death of a Unicorn takes place at the most luxurious iteration of the cabin in the woods trope, as Elliot (Paul Rudd) takes his daughter Ridley (Jenna Ortega) with him on a trip to visit his boss Odell Leopald (Richard E. Grant). Elliot hopes a lucrative business offer will help their financial situation, particularly after the death of Ridley’s mother. However, on the way there, an argument leads to the pair running over a unicorn. Although Elliot is shown bludgeoning the unicorn to death, once at the house, the creature appears to still be alive and Odell, the head of a pharmaceutical company, and his family learn it has magical healing powers.
On the surface, Death of a Unicorn comes across as a satirical horror comedy, with characters that are purposefully obtuse and bordering on unrealistic. The Leopolds have a total disregard for the fact that the unicorn is a living creature and have no qualms in literally bleeding it dry for their own gain. Due to their work in pharmaceuticals, they operate using scientific evidence and hard facts. This serves as a contrast to Scharfman’s use of Unicorn folklore, which cannot be proven and merely relies on an individual’s own belief. When Ridley attempts to warn the Leopalds about the danger of their actions, they ignore her as they can only see what they have to gain from the Unicorn’s healing powers. Scharfman uses the Leopolds and their greed to show the pitfalls of disregarding folklore, as they act as the extreme version of disbelief. It heightens the comedic tone of the movie while allowing the importance of folklore to have a sense of intent, as it is essentially the hubris of the Leopolds.
‘Death of a Unicorn’ Takes Inspiration From ‘Nosferatu’ and ‘The Witch’

Image via Universal Pictures

Ridley begins to research unicorn mythology, believing the exploitation of the creature is dangerous. These segments show a series of tapestries that tell the tale of a unicorn hunted and captured in the late 15th century, which are real pieces of art that parallel the plot. These tapestries show a civilization taking advantage of a unicorn and warn of the potentially deadly consequences of this, noting the creature can only be tamed by a pure maiden.

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The intense commitment to matching the beats of the movie to these woven frames feels akin to the style of Robert Eggers. This came from Scharfman working at the production company that was making The Witch and overseeing the early development of Nosferatu. Scharfman had access to Eggers’ research books and seeing this “research-based” approach was an “illuminating moment” for him. Nosferatu not only hugely respects its original but commits itself to ancient vampire folklore much like The Witch in the way it explores Puritanism. The filmmaking framework allows Scharfman to take something truly unfathomable to modern-day audiences in a unicorn and uses history to explain away any doubt and make the story feel tangible to a modern audience.
Ari Aster’s Influence Can Also Be Seen in ‘Death of a Unicorn’

In real life, the only panel of the tapestry that was damaged is the one that shows the unicorn attacking the civilians. Therefore, Scharfman took the liberty of creating his own expansion of what this panel would look like if completed. Through this, he was able to align the historical deaths with the way his characters were killed in the movie. This manipulation of folklore feels more akin to Ari Aster, who was an executive producer on Death of a Unicorn, and the way he crafts backstories in his movies. At the beginning of Midsommar, a tapestry demonstrates the movie’s events as well as outlines the extensive lore of the Hårga which bears similarities to the way the tapestry is reflective of Death of a Unicorn’s narrative.
Scharfman’s directorial debut is hugely impressive in the way it uses unexpected visuals but counters them with a commitment to spending time exploring and explaining the folklore behind them. This allows its unorthodox subject matter to feel real, gifting the audience with a much-needed suspension of disbelief.

Death of a Unicorn

Release Date

March 28, 2025

Director

Alex Scharfman

Writers

Alex Scharfman