Close Menu
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest YouTube LinkedIn TikTok
    TopBuzzMagazine.com
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest YouTube LinkedIn TikTok
    • Home
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Music
    • Fashion
    • Books
    • Science
    • Technology
    • Cover Story
    • Contact
      • About
      • Amazon Disclaimer
      • Terms and Conditions
      • Privacy Policy
      • DMCA / Copyrights Disclaimer
    TopBuzzMagazine.com
    Home»Movies»Weapons review – fun but familiar horror hijinks
    Movies

    Weapons review – fun but familiar horror hijinks

    By AdminAugust 8, 2025
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Weapons review – fun but familiar horror hijinks



    If you’ve been to the cinema in the past few months, specifically to watch a horror film, you might have seen an intriguing teaser for Zach Cregger’s sophomore film, Weapons, in which a child’s voice recalls the night that 17 children – all from the same third grade class – disappeared in the small town of Maybrook, Pennsylvania. At 2.17am, they silently got out of bed, left their homes, ran off into the night, ​“and they never came back” leaving only ominous security footage and devastated parents in their wake. Warner Bros capitalised on this creepy premise (and Cregger’s breakout success with Barbarian) through a mysterious marketing campaign – de rigueur for any self-respecting modern horror – setting Weapons up to be the scare of the summer. 

    With a class of kids missing, suspicion falls to their teacher, Justine Gandy (Julia Garner), an unassuming blonde with big glasses who is just as disturbed by the disappearance as the rest of the town. Leading the witch hunt against her is Archer (Josh Brolin), the father of one of the missing children, who is dead certain Matthew’s teacher knows more than she’s letting on despite any evidence to support this (we have no reason to distrust Gandy beyond her functioning alcoholism). There is one lead, in the form of the only pupil from the class who didn’t disappear, but Alex (Cary Christopher) isn’t talking, and the small-town cops are in way over their heads. Well-meaning Principal Marcus (Benedict Wong) appeases the parents by letting Justine go, and with nothing left to lose, the teacher starts looking into the disappearance herself.

    Get more Little White Lies

    The same spiky sense of humour Cregger displayed in Barbarian returns in Weapons, even kicked up a notch – there are striking moments of absurdity and physical comedy that undercut some of the more visceral unpleasantness (Cregger has an eye for the unsettling). Garner’s pleasingly undone performance as a woman on the brink of losing everything is nicely matched by Brolin’s gruff concerned father despite the thinness of both roles, though it’s Amy Madigan who steals the show when she pops up in the third act, even if her character is woefully undercooked. This lack of finesse speaks to a problem that Cregger also exhibited in Barbarian: he’s got style, a sense of humour and good casting instincts, but often the ideas in his films are more interesting than how he manages to realise them.

    For example: there was speculation prior to Weapons’ release that the film might be an allegory for America’s ongoing failure to reckon with the epidemic of school shootings that have plagued the country for decades. While there is some evidence to support this in the film (an exchange between Justine and Archer, a striking but unexplained image Archer sees in his dreams) the imagery is a flimsy gesture rather than a meaningful statement, muddled in with a small-town witch hunt and a side plot involving a local cop’s run-in with a homeless drug addict. The peaks and troughs of the narrative are perhaps a side effect of its chapter structure, which shows the story from the perspective of various characters. Some are excellent, such as the one about left-behind pupil Alex, but others feel a little like filler material.

    The approach has method – in pre-release interviews, Cregger revealed Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia was a big influence on Weapons, in that a cast of characters are bound by one common event, and we see the story unfold from each of their perspectives. Such a bold statement inevitably sets a filmmaker up for failure, and Cregger seems to have forgotten the thing that made Magnolia so great was the originality of PTA’s vision. Rather egregiously, the big reveal of Weapons is incredibly similar to that of Barbarian, and once you notice that striking rehash, it’s impossible to ignore other echos within the film which feel less like stylistic hallmarks and more like lazy fallbacks. His tendency to leave more questions than answers doesn’t help in that area – while there’s often nothing more disconcerting than the unknown, it becomes an easy way out when your ideas are already spookily similar to ones you peddled last time around.

    It’s a shame that the film falls back on old ideas, because Weapons’ first half is genuinely intriguing and some of the film’s scares are effective in both shock value and bewilderment. It’s clear that Cregger has a cinematic spark, and his sick sense of humour is most welcome in these trying times, but two films in, it’s time to find a new bogeyman.





    View Original Source Here

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

    Related Posts

    The Surprising MCU History Between Kang and Doctor Doom

    October 3, 2025

    The Smashing Machine review – a moving portrait…

    October 2, 2025

    Has Wayward Season 2 Been Canceled or Renewed?

    October 2, 2025

    20 Great Comedies That Got Bad Reviews

    October 1, 2025

    Urchin review – a sharp, empathetic study of life…

    October 1, 2025

    Harry Potter HBO Show’s Hogwarts Express Shown in New Video & Photos

    September 30, 2025
    popular posts

    Something in the Water 2023 Day 3 Canceled Due to

    Regé-Jean Page Just Addressed Whether He’ll Return for ‘Bridgerton’ Season

    Bookish Is a Bad Thing? A History of The Word

    Caroline Announce Tour Dates, Share Video for New Song “Total Euphoria”: Watch

    New Tool Helps Predict Where Wildfire Smoke Will Blow

    Why I love Stephen Rea’s performance in The Crying Game

    Travel The Universe With 8 Interstellar Books Like The Expanse

    Categories
    • Books (3,447)
    • Cover Story (8)
    • Events (19)
    • Fashion (2,547)
    • Interviews (45)
    • Movies (2,747)
    • Music (3,031)
    • News (161)
    • Politics (6)
    • Science (4,597)
    • Technology (2,742)
    • Television (3,472)
    • Uncategorized (932)
    Archives
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest YouTube Reddit TikTok
    © 2025 Top Buzz Magazine. All rights reserved. All articles, images, product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners. All company, product and service names used in this website are for identification purposes only. Use of these names, logos, and brands does not imply endorsement unless specified. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
    Do not sell my personal information.
    Cookie SettingsAccept
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    SAVE & ACCEPT