Weapons

"Those kids walked out of those homes, no one pulled them out. No one forced them."

Creepy, unsettling and suspenseful, Weapons disquiets and perturbs as it unravels the mass disappearance of 17 children from the same classroom descending into a nightmarish chaos that’s carefully woven yet masterfully manic with an uneasy atmosphere that’s so intensely engaging despite all of its haunting dread. 

Discussion Points:

Went into this as blind as possible and I’m so glad! Literally only knew the synopsis and the cast - and didn’t even know how much horror versus mystery it would be. Happy to report it’s a terrific mix of both - and my friend who never watches horror turned to me afterwards and said “I feel like there are parts of my brain that I’d never felt before…. Is your brain meant to tingle at the back that way!” Whilst I still tend to steer clear of most horror, occasionally something that’s less scare focused and more cerebral comes along and really blows me away. This is an intense character study about a parent’s worst nightmare - the disappearance of their child - that escalates into a darkly mystical folk tale that feels like a modern Brothers Grimm scary story designed to keep the kids in bed forever. Julia Garner, Josh Brolin and Alden Ehrenreich all deliver fantastic performances amidst a tight ensemble, whilst the multi-linear approach focusing on each characters version of events helps keep the film fresh and always leaves you guessing. Zach Creggar directs, writes and co-composes with such confidence as he builds suspense and both elevates the stakes whilst descending into more disturbing depths of controlled chaos. Some will love the ending, others won’t - but I was all in for the bonkers bizarre brash closing to this steadily manic masterpiece.