That Gruesome Animated Film Conclusion That Haunts Viewers
Among every mature animated films I’ve ever watched, nothing has stuck with me as much as the terror-laced finale of a graphically gory and highly provocative 2022 movie The Unicorn Wars.
In 2015’s, the Spanish writer-director created a dark, bleak and frequently brutal universe with some tiny , forlorn glimmers of optimism.
Although The Unicorn Wars seems like it originated from a desire to advance the medium even more, the filmmaker clarified that it was actually an attempt to communicate a universal, multicultural theme about “the mutual source of all wars.”
That message is conveyed through a squad of colorful pastel bears , clearly inspired by a popular line of lovable figures.
Being raised in a society built around militarism and the military-industrial complex, a lot of the bears are consumed by exterminating the mythical beasts, due to a sacred text that claims them they previously were kings of the woods, until these creatures forced them out.
Others have not completely bought into the brainwashing, and would rather try out substances and mate outdoors.
Unlike their friendly counterparts, these bright beings have visible genitals and clear libidos.
For one especially vicious, skeptical animal, the character Bluey, the war with unicorns turns into a path to control — and particularly to authority over his gentler, more compassionate sibling the character Tubby.
This bear is a bully and a seeming sociopath , and as terror dominates his unit and kills his comrades sequentially, he takes more and more influence personally, through ever more violent, harmful methods.
At the same time, these mythical beings are experiencing their own nightmare, in the form of a growing, harmful creature in their woods.
“Initially, it appears as a lighthearted film,” the director stated. “Yet it turns into a more dramatic and sad film. And by the end, it’s a horror film.”
Unicorn Wars begins feeling a bit like among the playful features by a legendary animator, which find a mischievous joy in permitting drawn beings curse, engage in violence, or engage sexually.
Afterward it becomes more akin to a bleaker film from the same artist, including ever more visual gore , a tangible relation to the actual tragedy of battle.
By the end, it is a full-on Grand Guignol massacre.
The fear which makes this an ideal spooky-season viewing begins much sooner than one might expect.
The Unicorn Wars is one for the devoted lovers of violence, for enthusiasts of extreme cinema who wish to see something they haven’t ever seen on-screen before, and can endure a narrative that offers no restraint.
View it with the lights off free from interruptions, and the conclusion will burrow into your mind and linger.
Where to watch: Offered for digital rental or sale on several online services.
