INTO THE DARK // A FILM REVIEW OF “WEAPONS”
BY MATEO MORENO
Zach Cregger’s last film Barbarian took a simple premise, a woman showing up to her booked rental home and finding out that it’s double booked, into a surreal and satisfying thriller, one that was completely terrifying and original. Now he returns with WEAPONS and it is undoubtedly another home run. It’s a thriller and a mystery. A surreal horror film. And one that makes the best viewing experience by knowing as little as you can about it. I only watched the teaser trailer before seeing it, deciding to keep myself completely in the dark on the real plot of the film. That teaser was terrifying yet didn’t tell you anything about the film. So, I kept it that way. I almost didn’t even write this review, wanting others to bask into the darkness with complete surprise as I did. Yet I felt I needed to talk about it. It’s the kind of film you NEED to talk about. Fear not, you won’t be spoiled with this review, but hopefully it’ll intrigue you enough to know that yes, this is perhaps the first must-see film of 2025.
The film begins with an incredibly eerie concept: In a small suburb of Maybrook, 17 third-grade kids all go missing. Not only that, but these 17 kids all shared the same classroom, and all left their homes at the exact same time, at 2:17am. Several houses had door cams, which showed the time signature of them leaving. Not only that, but they all went running out of their home, arms to their side, almost like an airplane, running into the darkness, not to be seen again. The only ones in that classroom not to disappear are the teacher Justine Gandy (Julia Gardner) and one student named Alex (Cary Christopher), who both show up the following day. Why? What exactly happened and why does no one have a single answer? The town begins to try and find answers, and someone to blame. That person is Justine, since she was their teacher and it’s just too eerie that everyone except one child who disappeared was in her class. Did she convince them to all leave that evening? The town is grieving and wants answers, especially grieving father Archer (Josh Brolin). Justine’s principal Marcus (Benedict Wong) tries to both protect her and support a mourning and frustrated community. Justine wants answers too and she thinks they might lie in the one child who didn’t disappear, Alex. And trust me, things go from strange to very strange moment by moment.
Weapons works on multiple levels, some obvious, some not, but all of it is a fully cathartic viewing experience. It’s troubling and scary and does indeed remind you of the all-to-real school violence happening in everyday America. Though the plot isn’t about a high school shooter, the pain still reflects a town in despair the same way. The way that Cregger crafts the film in segments, from different points of view and only releases information when you need it, makes for a chilling experience. The cast are all fantastic here, with Julie Gardner’s performance anchoring much of the film with her confusion, despair and anger. You feel for her even though you don’t know if you can trust her. Josh Brolin’s performance as a father of a missing child turned detective is very engrossing as well, and his scenes with Gardner radiate wildly. The entire supporting cast adds many engrossing layers, with the ex-boyfriend cop Paul (Alden Ehrenreich) adding a wrench into the already muddied sequence of events, the unreliable witness James (Austin Abrams) bringing some comic chaos to the scene and Wong’s Marcus adding warmth and decency to an out-of-control situation. Saying any more would be spoiling this truly excellent film, one that doesn’t necessarily require multiple viewings but will only be enriched by doing so. This is a true example of an “edge of your seat” thriller.
GRADE: A WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY Zach Cregger STARRING Julia Gardner, Josh Brolin, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Amy Madigan. NOW PLAYING IN THEATRES EVERYWHERE.