When 17 kids go missing from the same classroom, a town is turned upside down, with no leads, and more questions than answers. Julia Garner (Fantastic Four, Ozark) plays Justine, the teacher of the class where all the kids went missing from. There is only one student, Alex (Cary Christopher) who did not disappear.
Justine finds herself in the crossfire and is blamed for the incident. One of the fathers, Archer Graff (Josh Brolin) believes she did something and begins to harass her. He never gives up on his mission to find his missing son and starts to investigate on his own. Justine leans on her boss and the principal of the school, Andrew (Benedict Wong, Dr. Strange) for advice and moral support, but his hands are also tied, and he just wants to keep the peace at school. When Justine is asked to take leave, she becomes an alcoholic and things really begin to escalate.
There are so many twists and turns, if you think you’ve figured it out you are in for a surprise. There is humor laced throughout the film and while the movie is insanely scary, the humor is perfectly placed and alleviates some of that tension. I found myself laughing the most with interactions between the drug addict, Anthony (Austin Abrams, Dash and Lily) and the police officer, Paul (Alden Ehrenreich). The two of them together provided a lot of comic relief. When I tell you I was scared, I was SCARED! I think what surprised me the most was the emotional component to this film. I don’t often feel moved by horror movies, but this one really surprised me.
Weapons is a horror movie that can redefine the genre. Not only jump scares or creepy imagery, this movie works its way into your head and will you have on the edge of your seat. The only theater experience I can compare it to is A Quiet Place, when everyone was completely locked in. This movie has a story to tell, and is one of a kind.
I have to give an immense thank you to the writer, producer and director, Zach Cregger (Barbarian). This movie was absolutely incredible, I think it was perfect. You can tell this is not just any movie, it’s really, really special. I can’t wait to see what else Zach does, I feel like this movie already solidifies him as one of the greatest horror filmmakers of all time.
WEAPONS only in Theaters August 8th, 2025.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Ashley Kethley (Contributing Editor) is a frequent traveler currently living in San Diego. She's a super nerd who enjoys all kinds of movies and doesn't always think the book was better. Click Here to check out Ashley's Articles.