The Gory Animated Movie Conclusion That Haunts Audiences
Out of all the adult-oriented animated films I’ve personally watched, no other has stuck with me quite like the fear-filled finale of a graphically gory and highly provocative film from 2022 The Unicorn Wars.
In 2015’s, the Spanish writer-director developed a grim, melancholy , frequently brutal world with some tiny , forlorn hints of optimism.
While Unicorn Wars feels like it came from a drive to push the medium further, the filmmaker clarified that it was actually an effort to express a global, cross-cultural message regarding “the common origin of each battle.”
That idea is expressed via a squad of brightly hued teddy bears , obviously inspired by a famous series of cuddly figures.
Maturing in a community centered on militarism as well as the war machine, a lot of the bears are obsessed with exterminating unicorns, due to a sacred text that claims them they were once rulers of the woods, before the horned beings forced them out.
Some have not completely bought into the indoctrination, , choose to try out narcotics or fornicate in the woods.
In contrast to their cuddly counterparts, these colorful critters display sexual organs and clear urges.
For one notably brutal, pessimistic creature, the character Bluey, the battle against unicorns transforms into a route toward dominance — and particularly to dominance over his gentler, nicer brother Tubby.
This bear acts as a tormentor , a seeming antisocial figure , and while fear dominates his group and kills his comrades individually, he grabs progressively control for himself, in increasingly gory, destructive ways.
Simultaneously, the unicorns are suffering their own horror, in the form of a spreading, harmful creature in their forest.
“In the early stages, it feels like a lighthearted film,” the director commented. “But then it becomes a more intense and sorrowful movie. And ultimately, it’s a scary feature.”
Unicorn Wars begins feeling a bit like among the whimsical films from a renowned animator, that discover a wicked pleasure in letting animated figures swear, engage in violence, or engage sexually.
Afterward it turns into more akin to a more grim movie from the same director, with increasingly graphic violence , a noticeable link to the real suffering of battle.
In the finale, it is a full-on theatrical horror massacre.
The horror that makes the film a Halloween-friendly watch begins much sooner than that description suggests.
The Unicorn Wars is ideal for the most dedicated fans of gore, for enthusiasts of intense movies who wish to see a movie they haven’t ever watched previously, and who can handle a plot that pulls unflinching brutality.
See it in a dark room free from interruptions, and the finale will crawl deep within you and linger.
Where to watch: Accessible via streaming or buying on various online services.
