Films have relatively little real estate compared to television, so it’s important to use them wisely. Unicorns excels at knowing its point and sticking to it.
Starring Jason Patel and Ben Hardy in the lead roles as Aysha/Ashiq and Luke, respectively, the film also gets a point for nailing the casting.
Unicorns does not do anything different with the premise. A man — presumably straight — develops feelings for a genderqueer or gender-bending individual and wrestles with those feelings.
Some media decide to relish the ugliness that arises in that situation as a man’s notions of himself come crumbling down, and he lashes out.
Usually, they hurt themselves or the other person.
‘Unicorns’ Features Well-Rounded Characters.
The film avoids this trap by rounding out the worlds of its main characters so that it doesn’t seem like queerness is the only thing they have going on. Because, in reality, queer people are also dealing with a plethora of other stuff that being human throws at them.
Luke is struggling to raise his son without a partner to support him, and every attempt at connection fails. He meets Aysha after being rebuffed, and if he had not known that she is a drag queen, he would have hit it and quit it.
Aysha is struggling with balancing her culture with queerness, and drag is the escape.
But even the escape has problems as fierce competition develops between the queens with devastating consequences.
It Sells the Story.
Every scene and plot point in the film serves a great purpose of threading the whole narrative together.
Nothing is used to create conflict for conflict’s sake; instead, it is used for character development and adding dimension.
It is why Unicorns feels like a real story.
Watching it, one can’t help but feel like this is happening somewhere to someone, which makes it even more beautiful.
Everything is presented existentially in movies with this premise, which doesn’t give the film room to breathe.
A prime example of such a film is Femme, also from the UK, which thrives in hyperbolizing situations so much that it fails to communicate its point well.
‘Unicorns’ Is Anchored By Great Performances.
Hardy immerses himself in Luke, looking at and presenting the part.
He captures the emotions of a man struggling with a lot, and then more is heaped on him. It’s one of those situations where when it rains, it pours, and there’s no shelter.
Luke is highly attracted to Aysha, and she doesn’t make it easy for him.
She slithers into his heart with honest conversation and some flirting; before he knows it, he’s in love.
Patel looks like he was born to play Aysha, who can initially seem soft and harmless, but she comes alive when in drag and desire.
Aysha is consistent in her mannerisms and actions, which is a pleasure to watch as she pursues everything she wants.
When tragedy strikes, however, she disappears, and the difference is stark. This is probably the best case ever made for drag on the screen.
Like the film’s poster, Unicorns is colorful and alluring. It complements Ayesha’s drag persona, a cornerstone of the film.
Asian culture is also explored in the story, which greatly influences Aysha and her environment. From dressing to religion to music (which really slaps), it feels like part of the character rather than an extension of it.
Directors Sally El Hosaini and James Krishna Floyd beautifully capture everything about the film from Krishna Floyd’s near-perfect script.
The Qualms
The film avoids labeling Luke (maybe to match Hardy’s identity) with anything other than straight, which raises some issues.
It begs whether he is really attracted to the person or just his presentation as Aysha. If he only likes Ashiq in drag, what does that mean? Is it a fetish? How long can Ashiq stay in drag to keep Luke interested?
Getting in drag is not an easy feat and involves hours of preparation, only for things to shift and demand to be done all over again.
In the final scene, Ashiq has to be dragged up to keep him interested.
It is an issue that is foreshadowed when they first have sex, and as Lukes humps away, he actively avoids seeing Ashiq’s face.
How long can Ashiq keep it up?
Why is the film named Unicorns?
Maybe a sequel will answer these questions.