Weapons (2025)

If you somehow went along to see Weapons without realising that it was written and directed by the man behind Barbarian then it wouldn't take you too long to figure it out. There may be less dark humour throughout (it's definitely there though), but it makes use of some horror elements to comment on some societal issues, it has moments of sudden and unpleasant violence, events are shown in main chapters that jump between timestamps and characters, revealing a bit extra with each subsequent section, and there's fantastic tense atmosphere that you could cut with a knife. Not that Zach Cregger is the only person capable of making films with these ingredients, but there are certainly touchstones here that show him using some familiar tricks as he tries to present audiences with something arguably more unusual and unsettling than his last film.

As infuriating as it might seem to those trying to decide on whether or not they want to watch Weapons, it's a film that shouldn't be described in anything but the vaguest terms. Things begin with almost an entire classroom of children leaving their homes at two seventeen in the morning, and none of the parents have any idea where they went. Alex (Cary Christopher) is the one child left behind. Justine (Julia Garner) is the teacher who starts to be viewed with suspicion by the worried parents. Archer (Josh Brolin) is one of those worried parents. Other people who end up involved in the main narrative are a police officer named Paul (Alden Ehrenreich), a petty thief/drug addict named James (Austin Abrams), and a visiting relative named Gladys (Amy Madigan).

Where Cregger excels here is not only in his use of the main concept to work as an analogy for an ongoing problem that has affected modern day life in the USA for a few decades now, but also in the way that viewers can put their own interpretative spin on things. Whether you are sympathetic to the general state of parents who find their children suddenly absent, moved by those who seek to point a finger of blame at anyone, because an easy answer is better than no answer, or afraid of the kind of events that have previously left classrooms as distressingly empty spaces in the real world, Weapons provides a lot of food for thought. But it also provides some great atmosphere, very effective jump scares, and a surprising selection of familiar horror movie moments that feel a bit fresh and unique because of the way they are dressed up.

While the cast all do good work, and I really couldn't fault any one of the main performers named up above (also worth mentioning are Benedict Wong, Whitmer Thomas, Callie Schuttera, and the narration from Scarlett Sher), this is a film that works as well as it does thanks to the care and skill of Cregger and his behind-the-camera collaborators. The score works brilliantly, the cinematography from Larkin Seiple remains gorgeous and keeps everything visible even in the darkest of scenes, and the constant mix of creepiness and shock is handled expertly by everyone involved.

I was worried that this wouldn't live up to the hype, because that has certainly been building since the advertising campaign ramped up a little while ago, but it absolutely does. People will have different moments they may find a bit less satisfying, and some will start to amplify their negative opinion if they want to push back against the majority who seem to love it, but I am struggling to find any fault with it. The runtime could have been trimmed down slightly, but I can't even think of where I would want some time shaved off. Okay, maybe I would have preferred some other kind of explanation for what is ultimately revealed during the finale, but it's easy for me to sit here and say that without thinking of anything that would have been better. Those are very minor things something stopping me from rating this as an absolutely perfect film. It comes damn close though.

9/10

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Prime Time: Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark (2019)

Let me be up front right now by declaring how much I enjoy Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark, even if I haven't ever read any of the books it is based on (they seem to be a cross between Goosebumps tales and urban legends). It really works for me, thanks to the wonderful atmosphere, the set-pieces, and the young cast all doing their best to sell it. Unfortunately, despite my own feelings on it, I struggle to think of people I would unconditionally recommend it to. I'll come back to that later.

The story concerns a group of young teens who find themselves in a local "haunted house" when they are being chased by a violent bully. They also find themselves a book of stories, apparently written by Sarah Bellows (a young woman who died some years ago, after a troubled life). When Stella (Zoe Colletti) reads the book in her home, she sees a new story. It's all about a scarecrow that comes to life, moving through the corn and killing someone. And it turns out that the story really happened. The group are now in danger. The stories will appear, and each one of them could be dead by the time the last word is written.

One of many films produced by Guillermo del Toro, but this time he also helped work on the general shape of the screenplay, aided by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, with the main credit then going to Dan and Kevin Hageman. It's easy to see why this would appeal to Del Toro, it's a film that is essentially about the power of storytelling and what repercussions can stem from the truth being hidden away when it yearns to be set free.

But it's André Øvredal in the director's chair, which brings a different style to the whole thing. This is a dark and unpleasant film, at times, with muted colours and shadows encroaching whenever a main story is about to be played out. Øvredal is happy to start off having viewers thinking this will be a light and fun film, gradually make things darker and darker, and then turn everything around again for a finale that ends up, sadly, feeling overly familiar and weak.

It's the shifting of tone that both helps and hinders the movie, and makes it so hard to recommend. I assumed this was a horror movie aimed at kids. It's not. Well, it's aimed at those who have fond memories of the books, from what I can gather, but also works well for a young teen demographic (I would say 13-15 year olds could really enjoy this, if they can get through the fairly horror-free first act).

If the tone never feels truly settled, the same cannot be said of the fantastic young cast. Colletti is a bright lead, Gabriel Rush and Austin Zajur are equally good as her friends, and Michael Garza is effective as the new kid in town, Ramon, who gets dragged into the whole dangerous adventure. Austin Abrams is all sneer and rage as the bully, Tommy, and Natalie Ganzhorn gets a big moment in a tale familiar to anyone who has heard any urban legends about big spots. There isn't too much screentime given to adults, but it's always good to see both Dean Norris and Gil Bellows in film roles, the latter playing a Police Chief who obviously doesn't believe the kids until he gets to see something wild with his own eyes.

I first saw this movie a few weeks ago. I decided that I couldn't settle on my final opinion, so I waited. And waited. Until I rewatched it again this week. I'm glad I did. Without waiting for the movie to conform to any expectations I may have had, I enjoyed it a lot more. There are some impressive special effects, some very memorable set-pieces, and a decent enough story to pin everything on, even if it does mean that it needs resolved during those disappointing end scenes.

8/10

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