REVIEW: Unicorn Store Takes The Audience On A Whimsical Journey To Becoming An Adult

Unicorn Store, directed by Brie Larson, is a very different take on your typical coming of age story. Kit, a young adult who failed out of art school for being too creative is stuck in a rut. She believes she’s now a failure and to make matters more complicated she, like every other young person just out of college, has to find a job.

To prove she can be an adult to her parents (Joan Cusack and Bradley Whitford) Kit begins work at a public relations firm, where the boss is inappropriate and a coworker is simply mean. Kit spends her days making copies and being overly nice to her boss when she receives a message out of the blue from “The Store”. Kit is presented with the opportunity to buy a unicorn courtesy of an even more eccentric salesman, played by Samuel L. Jackson. She must complete several tasks before she can walk away with her magical horse.

As Brie Larson’s directorial debut, she takes the audience on a trip through the eyes of what every young adult has gone or is going through ain life. It’s no easy task for Kit to work a job she has no interest in. Especially as Kit feels she has dreams bigger and more whimsical than most. However, her determination to hold on to her dream, even as she is continuously knocked down, is a message that is wonderful to reinforce.

For many, especially young women, dreams fly out the window because the fear of failure is too great. If the fear doesn’t keep the dream away, having a dream that is a bit outside what may be considered socially acceptable will do it, too. Kit proves that with dreams, failure is never the final option and even though the dream doesn’t match societal expectations it doesn’t mean you should stop striving for it.

Brie gives a wonderful performance as Kit that is highlighted by her incredible supporting cast. Samuel L. Jackson brings a mentor attitude to The Salesman and plays so well off Brie. Although you will spend much of the film wondering if he really will get her that unicorn. Mamoudou Athie steps in as Virgil, a new friend Kit hires to build a stable for her unicorn. Mamoudou and Brie’s chemistry is delightful and brings even more spark to the film.

Unicorn Store is a fun and weird film that will leave you with a warm feeling. For many, childhood dreams are cast to the side once they become an adult. Unicorn Store reminds us that maybe, just maybe, not letting go of those dreams and actually working on them can result in a childhood dream becoming an adult reality.

Grade: B-