Sometimes a good cast can do a lot of heavy lifting.

“Death of a Unicorn” follows a father and daughter (Paul Rudd and Jenna Ortega) who accidently run over a unicorn and start to get hunted by its parents; Will Poulter, Téa Leoni, and Richard E. Grant also star as Alex Scharfman writes and directs.

I love a good horror-comedy. Things like “Cabin in the Woods,” “Ready or Not,” and “The Babysitter” are able to be creepy yet bring the chuckles, and for most of “Unicorn’s” runtime it is able to do the same. It gets a little messy by the end, biting off more than it can chew and having ideas too big for its runtime and budget, but I thought this was an entertaining creature feature with some great performances.

I’ve liked Will Poulter since his breakout in 2013’s “We’re the Millers,” and think he was overlooked for awards talk for his performance in Kathryn Bigelow’s “Detroit.” So we know that he can act but I was still surprised just how good his comedic timing was here as a spoiled rich kid. Poulter has some funny quips and solid retorts with the rest of the cast, and I will continue to look forward to seeing him in projects.

Paul Rudd (who has still not aged a day in 20 years) has some warm fatherly chemistry with Jenna Ortega (who seems doomed to play an angsty teenager for the duration of her 20s). They each also have a couple chuckle-worthy line deliveries, even if their characters don’t receive much development or extra traits. It’s also nice to see Téa Leoni in something again, her first film since 2011’s “Tower Heist.”

The animation of the unicorns is ok, sometimes being a gritty, practical horn but at other times looking like a History Channel original movie (derogatory). The film introduces rules about unicorn lore and tries to give elaborate backstories, but seems uninterested in expanding upon them or having much of it come into play by the climax. The end of the film also enters “sure, why not” territory with how it wraps everything up, and may be a bit too goofy or convenient for some viewers.

“Death of a Unicorn” isn’t as smart or creepy as it could have been, but I thought there were enough laughs and moments of campy horror to be worth a watch. Rudd, Oretega, and Poulter are all solid comedic talents, and there are some glimpses of promise from Scharfman behind the camera. I imagine it plays well with an audience or group of friends, and in a world of $270 million Disney bombs sometimes smaller films are the ones to seek out.

Critics Rating: 6/10