The Gruesome Animated Film Ending That Stays With Fans
Out of all the mature animated films I’ve ever viewed, no other has stuck with me as much as the terror-laced ending of the graphically gory as well as highly provocative film from 2022 The Unicorn Wars.
Back in the year 2015, this Spain-based filmmaker developed a dark, somber and frequently brutal world that included a few small , forlorn glimmers of optimism.
While Unicorn Wars seems like it stemmed from a drive to push the medium even more, the director stated that it was rather an effort to convey a widespread, cross-cultural message about “the common origin of all wars.”
That idea is expressed via a band of vividly colored bears , openly modeled after a famous line of cuddly figures.
Growing up in a community built around aggression and the military-industrial complex, many of these creatures are obsessed with killing unicorns, thanks to a religious scripture which states the bears they were once rulers of the woods, before these creatures forced them out.
A few haven’t fully accepted the brainwashing, and would rather sample narcotics or engage sexually in the forest.
Unlike their cuddly counterparts, these vivid animals show sexual organs , clear libidos.
For a particular notably brutal, pessimistic creature, the character Bluey, the war against unicorns becomes a road to control — and specifically to supremacy over his more tender, kinder brother the character Tubby.
The character behaves aggressively , an obvious antisocial figure , and as terror overcomes his group and takes his comrades individually, he grabs more and more power for himself, in increasingly violent, destructive ways.
At the same time, these mythical beings are suffering their own nightmare, as an expanding, deadly beast in their habitat.
“In the early stages, it feels like a comedy,” the director commented. “Yet it turns into a more intense and melancholic film. And ultimately, it’s a terrifying movie.”
The Unicorn Wars starts out similar to one of the most whimsical movies from a legendary filmmaker, which find a mischievous joy in letting drawn beings swear, shoot each other, or engage sexually.
Then it turns into more akin to a darker work from that director, including ever more visual gore and a noticeable connection to the actual horror of war.
Ultimately, it becomes an outright Grand Guignol massacre.
The terror that turns the film a Halloween-friendly movie kicks in much sooner than that description suggests.
The Unicorn Wars is suited for the hardcore lovers of violence, for fans of extreme cinema who want to watch something they’ve never seen on-screen before, and can endure a plot that pulls unflinching brutality.
View it in a dark room without any distractions, and that ending will burrow into your mind and stay with you.
How to view: Offered for digital rental or sale on various online services.
