Unicorns
Luke (Ben Hardy, "X-Men: Apocalypse's" Angel) is a twenty-six year-old single father working for his dad as a mechanic in Essex. When he ventures into London one night he becomes transfixed by Aysha (newcomer Jason Patel), an exotic belly dancer who sidles up to him after her performance. He's delighted and their crackling chemistry results in a sexy kiss behind the club, but when a fan asks Aysha for a selfie, Luke realizes she is not a woman and takes off in confusion. But Aysha won't let it drop and, after tracking him down to his Essex garage, offers him a job driving her to gigs and they become a pair of "Unicorns."
Laura's Review: B-
Writer/director James Krishna Floyd makes his debut co-directing with Sally El Hosaini, who had cast him in her debut "My Brother the Devil." The filmmaking pair have made about half a good film, one which starts off strongly as two people see each other clearly enough to rethink their own identities, but becomes a somewhat juvenile romantic fantasy as real life obstacles apparently cease to exist. "Unicorns" is an LGBTQ film for hopeless romantics, but others may find it frustratingly simplistic, raising issues only to jettison them.
When Luke gets home, he's upset to see his dad Gary (Grant Davis) has allowed his five year-old to stay up way past his bedtime. Jamie (Taylor Sullivan) kicks up a tantrum, demanding his mother until Luke promises him a trip to Disneyland if he'll only go to sleep. Meanwhile Aysha is shocked when Faiz (Sagar Radia, HBO's 'Industry') freaks out over her attentions to a 'white boy' and refuses to drive for her any longer. The next day we'll see Aysha's alter ego, Ashiq, at his job in a beauty store, delighting a client with his sound advice, then surprised to see his brother Hammad (Michael Karim), come to tell him that back home in Manchester, people have begun to talk about what he's 'doing down here.'
When we see a sexy pair of feet in strappy sandals from beneath the car Luke's working on, we immediately guess who it is. Luke is alarmed, but his dad declares the guest 'quite tasty' and tells his son if he doesn't go after her, Gary will. Aysha is clearly still interested, but resorts to making a business deal, albeit a necessary one, to lure Luke in. He's standoffish at first as he drives toward her Birmingham gig, but her open playfulness draws him closer and soon they're laughing together, even more so when they stop to pick up three more queens on the way to dance at a millionaire's party. And while Luke has reminded Aysha that she's not a woman, his behavior towards her is chivalrous, concerned when she shows him the death threats she gets on her phone and protecting her when a fight breaks out between Aysha and fellow gaysian Karen. As Aysha explains, catty Karen (Ali Afzal) loves Faiz, but while Faiz married Karen he loves Aysha and Aysha does not love him.
While that gig was far from routine, it leads to a regular driving job as Luke is saving for that Disneyland trip, but when he has no one to look after Jamie and brings him along, the trio end up having something resembling a family outing, Luke taking note of just how well Aysha and his son connect. Luke is surprised to find himself turning down the advances of his wife, Emma (Hanna Onslow, "Empire of Light"), when she returns unexpectedly. Then one of Aysha's half-hearted invites in for a drink at the end of the evening, her expectations clearly set for disappointment, Jamie agrees and after a bumpy start - he's awkward and she expects rejection - the two fall into a passionate physical relationship. But of course, a third act obstacle will send Aysha home to her conservative parents (Nisha Nayar and Ravin J. Ganatr) as Ashiq, who refuses to take Luke's calls.
Cinematographer David Raedeker ("My Brother the Devil," "The Souvenir") alternates between the lushly hued, romanticized lighting of Aysha's performance space with the night lighting of city streets, going in for close-ups of longing looks. Newcomer Patel is alternately flirtatious and outwardly confident or shrouded in self doubt, his face one of defeated self esteem. Hardy, who occasionally gives off glimmers of James McAvoy, is fantastic here, with the outward look of a chav while expressing a singular interior life. His Luke never means to insult Aysha, even during his initial sexual panic, and Hardy goes full romantic longing, never more evident than while tipsy, performing karaoke with Aysha, his eyes expressing pure love. As Aysha's fellow queens, Val the Brown Queen, Saba Shiraz and Jamie Tank are comically boisterous.
But while the romance is sexy, the two who come together seemingly no longer worry about the fact that Jamie's begun bullying other kids at school or that Gary's sexual innuendos are very hetero forward or that the relationship may impact Emma's bid for custody or that Ashiq's mother has told him to never discuss his sexuality again nor ever tell his father. Love may conquer all but it doesn't make issues disappear, something composer Stuart Earl' overly precious score does nothing to rectify. "Unicorns'" stars are sexy and fun but doesn't dig deeply enough into the challengers facing their characters.
Robin's Review: B-
Luke (Ben Hardy), a dad, divorced and alone, wanders into a nightclub and meets one of the performers, attractive Aysha (Jason Patel), and, before you know it, they kiss. He is shocked to learn that she is actually a he and is repulsed. Then, she offers him a job as her driver and he needs the money in “Unicorns.”
What we have here is an old fashion boy-meets-girl romance story with a modern twist, though. Aysha makes him a business offer. Her driver, Faiz (Sagar Radia), left her in a lurch and she offers Luke 200 pounds to drive her to and from a gig. Since he promised his 5-year old son a trip to Disneyland, he jumps at the money.
He survives the evening unscathed so, when she offers him 1200 pounds a week to drive her to her gigs, it is a no brainer. This begins a sequence of rides, oftentimes with Aysha’s other drag performer friends, particularly the rambunctious Z (Val the Brown Queen), to their private performances. All the while, Luke starts to fall for the vivacious Aysha.
Aside from the homoerotic sex, this is a pretty straightforward romantic quasi-comedy (Z and her girls provide the comic relief) that does not bother itself with the details. Things, like Luke’s son, ex-wife, job as a mechanic and all the other mundane aspects of his life fall away behind the romance.
Aysha gets her own back-story when her life as a successful drag queen is tragically brought to an end by a vengeful opponent. But, not to worry, this is a romantic comedy so you know just how it will go.
The performances fit the bill of a romance with Luke getting the biggest arc of character as he journeys from his straight life to something very different for him. Feature newcomer Jason Patel works best as femme Aysha and less so as her masculine other half, Ashiq – as her, she is smart and in control, as he, he is just needy. I prefer Aysha. Supporting cast is limited but well played by the drag queens who have the funniest schtick.
Cohen Media releases "Unicorns" in select theaters on 7/18/25. Click here for theaters and play dates.
