Unicorn Wars

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1:33

Unicorn Wars

2023

1h 32m

Fantasy

Action

Animation

Comedy

Horror

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

81%

Tomatometer

31 Reviews

89%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

It's "Bambi meets Apocalypse Now" in this provocative and strangely beautiful horror comedy from acclaimed filmmaker and illustrator Alberto Vazquez (Birdboy: The Forgotten Children), who uses its outrageous candy-colored premise to explore religious zealotry, the tortured legacies of military fascism, and the depths of the soul. For ages, teddy bears have been locked in an ancestral war against their sworn enemy, the unicorns, with the promise that victory will complete the prophecy and usher in a new era. Aggressive, confident teddy bear Bluet and his sensitive, withdrawn brother Tubby could not be more different. As the rigors and humiliation of teddy bear bootcamp turn to the psychedelic horrors of a combat tour in the Magic Forest, their complicated history and increasingly strained relationship will come to determine the fate of the entire war.

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Critics Consensus

While its humor may strike some as needlessly crude, Unicorn Wars is a visually audacious strike against cultural and military fascism.

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Carlos Aguilar

Los Angeles Times

Even this early in the year, it seems unfathomable that another release could dethrone “Unicorn Wars” as the most uncompromisingly audacious animated film of 2023.

Mar 10, 2023

Full Review

Katie Rife

RogerEbert.com

While “Unicorn Wars” undoubtedly indulges [its] impulses—think cartoon genitalia and bears hanging themselves in despair—it thankfully also has more going on.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 10, 2023

Full Review

Beatrice Loayza

New York Times

“Unicorn Wars” is forcefully provocative, trying too hard to push buttons at the cost of more nuanced explorations of masculinity and power.

Mar 9, 2023

Full Review

Julian Singleton

Cinapse

An insane and insanely beautiful movie, one that recognizes that our inner children may be just as sadistic and violent as the most jaded combat veteran.

Jul 11, 2025

Full Review

Paul Klein

FILMHOUNDS Magazine

It's not hard to see that this film is aiming for satire of religious hatred and warfare, it's fairly obvious from the opening minutes we're heading in that direction and thanks in no small part to some gorgeous 2D animation the film looks amazing.

Rated: 3/5

Jul 5, 2024

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Employs kiddie-fodder conventions of the “aw, how cute” variety to subversive, startling effect.

Rated: 3.5/4

May 13, 2023

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Juan O

La animación es una belleza pero la historia me pareció floja.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/06/25

Full Review

Rachel K

I believe this movie is just too weird because unicorns are not really evil for as long as they're magical just like the ones in the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic show.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

08/22/24

Full Review

Isaac N

ES: Al leer la trama dije que chorrada la vi por las risas y me encantó además de estar acostumbrado a cine de animación española con trama mediocre pero no tiene un aire a Los Ositos Amorosos , tambien tiene un toque gore y una forma de ser una critica a la guerra de la forma más rara pero es muy buena 10/10 EN: When I read the plot I said that it was nonsense, I saw it for the laughs and I loved it, besides being used to Spanish animated films with a mediocre plot but it doesn't have an air of The Care Bears, it also has a touch of gore and a way of being a criticism of war in the strangest way but it's very good

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/11/23

Full Review

Mago X

If you liked this one. Watch the previous movie, birdboy and the forgotten children. Great too and darker

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/06/23

Full Review

Ryan C

From the same demented mind that brought us Birdboy: The Forgotten Children, comes this bombastic feature, essentially what if you took carebears, the Bible , and Apocalypse Now - threw them in a blender. It's an excellent film with great commentary on war and how religion can warp and twist how we view the world among other heavy themes. DONT BRING YOUR KIDS TO THIS - it's a mature, adult animated film. It's very original and will leave you in shock. Check it out

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/18/23

Full Review

EmeraldBeast

I believe Unicorn Wars is a great movie, as it dives into the less 'cute and cuddly' and more to the side of 'what if they weren't for kids' kind of thing. 10/10 movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/09/23

Full Review

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Alberto Vázquez

Director

Jon Goiri

Bluey

Jaione Insausti

Tubby

Txema Regalado

Father

Ramón Barea

Narrator

Alberto Vázquez

Screenwriter

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Unicorn Wars: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

It's "Bambi meets Apocalypse Now" in this provocative and strangely beautiful horror comedy from acclaimed filmmaker and illustrator Alberto Vazquez (Birdboy: The Forgotten Children), who uses its outrageous candy-colored premise to explore religious zealotry, the tortured legacies of military fascism, and the depths of the soul. For ages, teddy bears have been locked in an ancestral war against their sworn enemy, the unicorns, with the promise that victory will complete the prophecy and usher in a new era. Aggressive, confident teddy bear Bluet and his sensitive, withdrawn brother Tubby could not be more different. As the rigors and humiliation of teddy bear bootcamp turn to the psychedelic horrors of a combat tour in the Magic Forest, their complicated history and increasingly strained relationship will come to determine the fate of the entire war.

Director: Alberto Vázquez
Screenwriter: Alberto Vázquez
Distributor: GKIDS
Genre: Fantasy, Action, Animation, Comedy, Horror
Original Language: European Spanish
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 10, 2023, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 10, 2023
Runtime: 1h 32m

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