The Gruesome Cartoon Film Conclusion That Stays With Audiences
Out of all the adult-oriented animated films I have ever viewed, no other has stuck with me as much as the fear-filled ending of the viscerally violent and highly provocative 2022 movie Unicorn Wars.
In the year 2015, the Spanish writer-director developed a grim, melancholy and often savage world with several minor , desolate hints of hope.
While Unicorn Wars feels like it stemmed from a drive to push the medium even more, the director explained that it was more a try to communicate a widespread, multicultural theme regarding “the shared root of every conflict.”
That message is communicated by means of a squad of colorful pastel bears , clearly inspired by a well-known line of cuddly figures.
Growing up in a community focused on warmongering and the military-industrial complex, numerous these creatures are obsessed with killing the mythical beasts, because of a holy book that tells the bears they were once kings of the forest, until the unicorns forced them out.
A few haven’t fully bought into the propaganda, and would rather sample drugs or engage sexually outdoors.
Unlike their gentle equivalents, these bright beings have visible genitals , obvious libidos.
For one notably brutal, pessimistic creature, Bluey, the war with unicorns transforms into a road to power — and especially to authority over his gentler, more compassionate sibling the bear Tubby.
The character acts as a tormentor and an obvious psychopath , and as horror takes over his group and kills his comrades one by one, he takes more and more power for himself, in increasingly violent, harmful methods.
At the same time, the unicorns are experiencing their own terror, through a growing, destructive monster in their forest.
“Initially, it seems like a lighthearted film,” the director said. “However it evolves into a more serious and sorrowful movie. And by the end, it becomes a scary feature.”
Unicorn Wars begins feeling a bit like one of the most whimsical features by a legendary animator, which find a mischievous joy in allowing cartoon characters swear, fire weapons, or have intimate relations.
Afterward it evolves into more akin to a more grim work from that creator, with increasingly visual gore and a noticeable link to the real suffering of war.
By the end, it’s a complete Grand Guignol massacre.
The terror which makes this a perfect Halloween watch starts well before than one might expect.
The Unicorn Wars is ideal for the devoted lovers of violence, for lovers of graphic films who want to watch a film they haven’t ever seen on-screen before, and who can handle a narrative that offers unflinching brutality.
View it in a dimly lit space with no disturbances, and that ending will dig into your mind and take up residence there.
How to view: Accessible via streaming or buying on several online services.
