That Grisly Animated Movie Conclusion That Haunts Fans
Among all the adult-oriented animated films I have ever viewed, nothing has remained with me quite like the terror-laced ending of the explicitly bloody as well as deeply subversive 2022 movie Unicorn Wars.
In the year 2015, this Spain-based writer-director created a grim, bleak , often savage universe with some tiny , forlorn twinges of optimism.
Although The Unicorn Wars appears as it originated from a drive to advance the medium further, the director explained that it was more a try to convey a global, multicultural theme regarding “the shared root of all wars.”
This theme is expressed via a squad of colorful pastel bears , openly modeled after a famous series of lovable figures.
Growing up in a society built around aggression and the defense industry, a lot of the bears are obsessed with exterminating the mythical beasts, thanks to a holy book that claims the bears they used to be rulers of the woodland, until these creatures drove them out.
Some have not completely bought into the propaganda, , choose to experiment with narcotics or mate in the forest.
In contrast to their gentle counterparts, these bright beings show sexual organs and definite sex drives.
For a certain especially vicious, skeptical animal, the character Bluey, the war with the unicorns turns into a path to power — and especially to supremacy above his more tender, nicer brother the bear Tubby.
The character is a bully , an obvious psychopath , and as horror dominates his group and kills his fellow soldiers sequentially, he takes more and more influence personally, in increasingly violent, destructive ways.
At the same time, the unicorns are enduring their own terror, in the form of a spreading, destructive monster in their habitat.
“In the early stages, it seems like a humorous movie,” the director said. “But then it becomes a more serious and sorrowful movie. And by the end, it becomes a horror film.”
The Unicorn Wars commences feeling a bit like among the playful features from a legendary animator, that uncover a mischievous joy in allowing cartoon characters swear, shoot each other, or engage sexually.
Subsequently it evolves into more akin to a more grim film from the same creator, including ever more visual gore and a noticeable link to the real horror of conflict.
By the end, it’s a full-on theatrical horror bloodbath.
The horror that turns this a Halloween-friendly viewing starts much sooner than that description suggests.
Unicorn Wars is one for the devoted gorehounds, for enthusiasts of extreme cinema who want to watch a film they’ve never viewed until now, and can endure a story that pulls no restraint.
See it in a dimly lit space with no disturbances, and the conclusion will dig into your mind and stay with you.
Where to watch: Available for streaming or buying on various online services.
