“There’s no originality in Hollywood anymore,” is a phrase that I’m not a big fan of, as it feels like an ignorant stance to take for those actually interested in movies. Are there a plethora of superhero films, an abundance of remakes or sequels, or downright similar summer blockbusters from year to year? Sure, there’s no denying that; but between those releases there are also a large number of original films that often slip through the cracks simply because they don’t have a $100 million budget, let alone $100 million to simply focus on marketing. What makes the mountain even harder for them to climb is the focus on all the “lack of originality in Hollywood,” instead of people pointing out all that is original that Hollywood has been offering.
Weapons is the second horror film written and directed by Zach Cregger (his first being Barbarian) and with it he has delivered an incredibly unique, unsettling, grotesque and just downright creepy psychological supernatural horror mystery that is unlike anything in recent memory. It’s the type of film that sits with you afterwards, like It Follows, where if you go in unaware of anything that’s about to take place, the journey you go on is almost traumatizing – but in a good, entertaining way that you want from a film like this.
You want a movie to resonate and make you just stop and think back about something that happened, why this may have gone down the way it did, why a character chose to do or not do something, or when something tragic happens to someone that it hits so hard you find yourself feeling bad that such a thing happened to them, even though they’re not real. It’s that engrossment in a story being told that can make or break a movie, and Cregger has that part nailed down. The way he’s crafted Weapons to be told from the perspective of six different characters in non-linear fashion, with all stories intersecting at different times to eventually bring it all together is masterfully handled.
The movie begins with a young narrator telling the viewer about a story that happened in their hometown, where a classroom of 17 children all got out of their beds one night at 2:17a.m., ran outside into the darkness and never returned. The teacher of that class, Justine Gandy (Julia Garner) and her one remaining student who didn’t run off into the night, Alex Lilly (Cary Christopher), are both questioned by police, but neither is viewed as a suspect or someone with any knowledge about what may have happened to the other kids. The father of one of the missing children, Archer Graff (Josh Brolin), doesn’t believe the police are doing enough and is adamant that Justine had something to do with it since they were her students.
It’s all a tightly knit mystery that is truly best experienced with as little knowledge as possible. I don’t watch movie trailers until after I’ve seen a film because so often they give away too much. I’d say that the trailer for Weapons does a great job of selling the film without tipping the audience off to much more than the intense and suspenseful ride they’re in for should they see the movie. Would I have left some parts out? Sure, and maybe Cregger wanted to also, but like I said earlier, these films don’t have massive marketing budgets so you have to pull the audience in with something and so what is shown during that two-minute trailer is understandable and still ominous enough that it shouldn’t wreck things for most. That said, I’d still avoid watching it beforehand if you’ve gone this far without seeing it.
I bring all that up because I won’t be diving into the plot more than I have above, as you know the basics and that’s the best place to start with a mystery. It’s no fun if I chip away at it or write something that may hint at something else, as then you’re simply waiting for those things to happen, or at least already know how certain things will turn out before you even begin. What I will say is that Cregger has a knack for building tension and suspense in proper fashion, where even if it feels like a jump scare is going to happen it doesn’t mean one is coming, or vice versa. There’s also no reliance on things like jump scares, as the ambiance of every aspect of the story being told just has a creepy aura to it, and when things do happen it’s just scary and unsettling all around, be it in the chilling sense, the shocking sense or of the “maybe I’ll leave the hall light on tonight,” variety.
While I did say that original films slip through the cracks at the start of this review, Weapons did actually find great, much deserved, box-office success. But this is the type of film that we should focus our energy on over complaining that yet another superhero film is coming out next month, because there’s always going to be another blockbuster release and if you allow yourself to have tunnel vision and only see when more of the same is coming then you’re doing yourself and filmmakers like Cregger a disservice because originality is out there, you just have to look a little harder to see where it may be playing. Luckily, Weapons isn’t hard to find, as it’s now available to be brought home in 4K for a truly terrifying home viewing experience.
Overall Movie Score: 4.5/5
4K Blu-ray Video and Audio Review:
Weapons is a simply glorious experience on 4K, with the 2160p/HDR10/Dolby Vision presentations all doing their job in amplifying the eerie atmosphere that Cregger has created in this film. There are plenty of dark scenes, even during the day, and the deep, rich blacks help pull the viewer into the moments instead of being taken out of them due to muddying or lack of depth. Everything about this movie is done right, which is often a benefit of the writer/director combo, with them knowing exactly what they want from every shot and moment. The details are wonderfully captured, the cinematography is superb and the effects (both special and practical) are seamlessly intertwined to feel real when anything of note takes place.
On the audio side of things we’ve got a terrifically creepy score, which fills the room subtly for the most part, but loudly when a moment calls for it. The sound effects can pop up randomly in various parts of the room depending on your speaker layout, but they only draw you into the moments all the more with how immersive the Dolby Atmos mix is. There’s truly nothing to really knock on either front, as Weapons is another fantastic example of horror done right for home viewing.
Special Features:
There are three featurettes here that aren’t too long, but still well worth a watch. What would’ve really been a feather in the cap is an audio commentary with Cregger, but it’s hard to say why those happen sometimes and not others, be it studio decisions or scheduling conflicts. Either way, it’s unfortunate as it would’ve been amazing to have heard him talk about the film while watching.
Director Zach Cregger: Making Horror Personal – This is a 6-minute featurette that sees Cregger talk about the sudden and unexpected death of a friend that brought on his writing an early draft of the script, and how other memories influenced the story as well. We’ve also got other cast and crew in brief interview clips here as well.
Weaponized: The Cast of Weapons – This is a 9-minute featurette that sees a lot of the same cast and crew return to talk about their characters, the differences between them and how Cregger was influenced by a highly acclaimed director and a film of his that influenced how Cregger built certain characters in this film.
Weapons: Texture of Terror – This is just under 7-minutes and we get to learn about the films make-up, textures, special effects and practical effects used throughout. There’s a lot of fun stuff in all of these, even though they’re over before you know it.
Disclaimer: A review copy of this Blu-ray was sent to me to cover in honest and truthful fashion.
Warner Bros. Pictures Presents Weapons. Written & Directed By: Zach Cregger. Starring: Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, Amy Madigan. Running time: 128 Minutes. Rating: R. Released on 4K Blu-ray: Oct. 14, 2025.
