The Hunt for the Unicorn Killer

(1999) The Hunt For The Unicorn MYSTERY/ THRILLER

Made for TV movie shown in two parts which can be seen together on one disc, based on a true story about Ira Einhorn nicknamed the 'Unicorn killer' who's a well known celebrity activist during the 60's and 70's but has an irrational behavior toward his female relationships that he lives with, particularly Holly played by Naomi Watts who went missing but then later found. Made in the same fashion as "All Good Things" except this one is a made for TV movie with the killer always getting away. I also don't like the fact how the assumed perpetrator gets away and viewers never know what this guy really looks like in real life since this is all made up- I should not have to 'google' this information on my own if this is indeed supposed to be a true story, at least provide an actual picture of what this guy really looks like at the end, for listening to this for 3 hours divided into two parts.

After seeing this film and reading that it is a documentary soap based on a 'real case', I asked myself what understanding we have of truth in visual or textual narratives. My first intuition was that in this film there are clichees put together in a stereotype way to tell a story with a conservative political message. Just the counterpiece of the more commonly told (and likewise simplistic) liberal story of the suppressed girl from the province, old fashioned and educated with narrow-minded moralist principles who moves to a urban environment and develops unimagined qualities, gets famous, discovers sex etc. Even if the story told in the "Hunt for the Unicorn-Killer" is "true" in the sense that the director was inspired by an incident with structurally the same facts - the way it is told, is absolutely incredible. Neither of the characters really wins any depth. The motives of the girl to stay with her friend who humiliates her and the motives for the friend to murder her out of jealoucy - even if the film insinuates that he never loved her stay obscure. The question why an explained pacifist kills her girl friend is answered in a too simplistic way, if the film suggests he was only having his ideas to make himself interesting and to seduce girls. I think it is also problematic to make a piece of fiction and pretend it to be real keeping the real names of persons and places. People might no longer distinguish between what was the case and what was just invented to make the plot more interesting. I think truth in narratives is more about cases being representative (even if they are invented) and told in a way sophisticated enough to come close to the complexities of real life. I rate it 1 out of 10.

If you're looking to dissuade your daughters from the fella she adores but you think little of, have her sit through this. Ira Einhorn was a celebrity of the peace / earth movements of the 60s and 70s. Extremely well respected, his peacenik persona cloaked a darker side that hated women and thought very little of anything other than himself and his personal causes. When his long-time girlfriend Holly Maddux decides to leave him, she disappears and eighteen months later her decomposed body is found in a locked trunk in his apartment. Through it all, Ira maintains his innocence, doing his best to convince the world that the American Government set him up, that Holly's murder was done to 'embarrass' him. Out on bail, he flees the country and lives at large in the UK until being caught in the late 90s in France. The French, however, knowing he has been convicted in absentia of Holly's murder and faces life in prison without parole once returned to the US, refuses to extradict him. Apparently, a higher court overturned this decision and he is currently appealing a later order to be sent back. Kevin Anderson and Naomi Watts are superb as the leads; he gives you the shivers as he unveils the layers of a clearly narcissistic sociopath and she, simply, breaks your heart. How many promising young women have you known who fall victim to their own lack of identity and the whims of an abusive lover? Filmed as a tv miniseries, this is a three and a half hour vehicle for victim's rights. While the first half of this is used to set up Ira and Holly's dysfunctional relationship, the perspective of Holly's family, and the anguish they go through in trying to bring their daughter's murderer to justice, takes precedence in the second half. If the evidence weren't so damning against Ira Einhorn, this would be just another manipulative movie of the week (however well acted). As it is, it leaves the viewer haunted by the possibilities of a life brutally extinguished and infuriated by the fact that justice is continually skirted by the one person responsible for the crime.

This excellent true life drama has just been aired on British TV - over two weeks. It was a fascinating story that sent a chill up the spine. However, I would be intrigued to know what happened to Ira Einhorn in the end. The film was made in 1999 and a note at the end of the film said he was appealing against his extradition from France, having once been successful. What has happened in the four years since? Was he finally brought to justice? If there are any Philadelphians out there who could tell me, I would love to know. Having said that, full marks to an excellent cast!

I have read several books and viewed many documentaries(even an episode of "America's Most Wanted") concerning this case and still come away with the feeling that there is more to the story than is being told. Ira Einhorn was a hippie guru in Philadelphia during the 60s and 70s, and was heavily involved in thought control, paranormal, and computer information programs. He always claimed that the CIA and other government agencies were monitoring his activities, and some of this is brought out in this movie. However, for the most part this is the story from the slain woman's family point of view. I also found it very interesting that the lawyer that got Einhorn out on bail(for murder for Pete's sake!)was none other than Arlen Spector, author of the JFK "magic bullet theory" and involved in many congressional intelligence oversight activities. Watching this movie, or following the case, one can see some of the Danny Casolaro incident present. This movie is presented fairly well, and the acting is superb, but watch it and read between the lines!