Film Review: Weapons (2025)

I’ll be the first to admit: I haven’t seen Barbarian, the film that everyone associates with this director. I know, I should watch it, especially because it’s widely praised. But even if Barbarian had zero buzz, I’d still go back to watch it now, simply because Weapons is that good.

The trailers for Weapons give away just enough to hint at the plot, which walks the line between eerie realism and subtle paranormal undertones. To summarise: 17 children disappear at the same time from a sleepy, typical American suburban town. Beyond the shock of their synchronised vanishing, all the children belong to the same class of 18 students, leaving just one behind: Alex (Cary Christopher, High Potential).

Naturally, questions arise around Alex. But attention also falls on their teacher, Justine (Julia Garner, Ozark, The Fantastic Four: First Steps) and the town is left reeling. With the police investigation going nowhere and more questions than answers, the film drops us into an emotionally loaded situation.

This is a brilliant premise, unsettling but grounded. The sudden disappearance of school children in modern-day America is tragically familiar. Weapons taps into that horror without resorting to violence or sensationalism. It’s a clever narrative move that adds emotional weight without courting controversy.

Another standout aspect is the film’s structure. Told in chapters named after various townspeople (not just Justine) the film unfolds through multiple perspectives. Each storyline reveals what they were going through before and after the disappearances, adding new layers to the mystery, tension and eventual resolution. You see this more often in books (think Game of Thrones books or The Affair TV series) than in film, and it works beautifully here. By viewing the same event from different angles, the story gains texture and humanity.

But this is, at its core, a thriller, and those elements deliver too.

Let’s start with the atmosphere. The town has that Stephen King vibe: idyllic on the surface, with something darker lurking underneath. Cinematographer Larkin Seiple (Everything Everywhere All at Once, Spider-Man: Far From Home) creates a perfect blend of clean daylight and ominous shadows. The colour palette is sharp and deliberate, complementing the dread that lingers in every frame. Combined with director Zach Cregger’s confident hand (fluid camera movements and restrained close-ups as needed) the mood is perfectly calibrated. This pairing of Cregger and Seiple is a dream team. They could easily handle a Stephen King adaptation, even though Weapons is an original story.

The acting is excellent across the board. Julia Garner and Josh Brolin deliver standout performances. While Weapons isn’t built as a showcase for acting, the entire cast shines in every scene they’re in.

Weapons is easily a top contender for thriller of the year. If this director–cinematographer duo continues working together, I can’t wait to see what they do next.