WEAPONS – Review by T.J. Callahan
Weapons: WTF?!
Following the success of Barbarian, Zach Cregger has brought us the most highly anticipated horror film of the summer, Weapons…and you won’t be disappointed. You may not be totally satisfied or even understand what you just watched, but you won’t be let down.
The movie tells the story of the disappearance of all but one child from a third grade class. The 17 students run from their homes one night at exactly the same time and are nowhere to be found, leaving the small town questioning who or what was behind the vanishing.
While the young narrator claims this is a true story, Weapons is inspired by social issues, real life events and the personal experiences of Cregger. Even though the narrative Cregger wrote is fictional, the emotional center is rooted in reality.
Weapons is deconstructed horror. The story is told in several vignettes highlighting each of the main character’s points of view of what happened that night including Julia Garner as Ms Gandy, the children’s teacher, Alden Ehrenreich as police officer Paul, Josh Brolin as a desperate father and Cary Christopher as Alex, the only classmate left. Benedict Wong and a sensationally unrecognizable Amy Madigan round out the A+ cast.
Possession is 9/10’s of Weapons. The title is more metaphorical than literal, exploring the idea of controlling the minds of children for your own gain. But is that gain to stay alive, to be in control or just pure evil? Weapons brings more fun with the drama than your average fright flick, however its just over two hour runtime is a bit too long, and leaves multiple plot holes. All is forgiven though thanks to the volume of entertainment value given in return.
My husband Ricky gives Weapons 1 ½ 👀s open. The first hour build up tested his spirit for spirits. The humor and devoted character acting raise Weapons to a 7 on the TeejFlixometer. See it in a full theater at 2:17AM or PM.
*Warning: you may experience an aversion to Campbell’s Soup, cheese graters and eccentric
