WEAPONS Film Review: A Projection of Zach Cregger’s Inner Psyche

Weapons is the follow-up feature from Barbarian director Zach Cregger, and it illustrates pretty clearly that he’s here to stay. To put it bluntly, Weapons is a fascinating film. It’s partially inspired by Paul Thomas Anderson’s work in Magnolia, and also by Denis Villeneuve’s Prisoners, which is not a terrible place to start. Magnolia’s influence is more on the subtextual side, whereas the Prisoners influence is evident in both colour palette and location (they’re both filmed around Atlanta but set in Pennsylvania suburbs).

After Cregger broke out with Barbarian, there was a bidding war for what would ultimately become Weapons. Netflix was involved, and Jordan Peele wanted his hands in there with Monkeypaw Productions, but Warner Bros. ultimately ended up winning, and Cregger landed a great deal for a director “on the rise”: a hunk of money and, crucially, final-cut privilege – not always the case with larger studios.

What Is Weapons About?

In Weapons, a class of elementary school children all leave their homes at 2:17 a.m. on the same night, running toward some unknown target and then appearing to vanish. The next day, just one student remains in the class with their teacher (Julia Garner).

The film is rooted in Cregger’s personal pain following the death of a very close friend. While he didn’t know what this movie would be when he started writing, he has talked about being influenced by David Lynch and transcendental meditation, allowing the subconscious mind to flow onto the page. While it might not be immediately apparent, it ultimately becomes clear that Weapons is a reflection of Cregger’s inner psyche.

What many folks appear not to know is that Cregger comes from a comedy background. He was part of the “Whitest Kids U’Know” comedy troupe, not too dissimilar to Danny and Michael Philippou, who were best known for their YouTube group Racka Racka before pivoting to two strong horror projects of their own in Talk to Me and Bring Her Back. Of course, there’s also Jordan Peele, another example of the inherent ties between comedy and horror.

Characters as Manifestations of Cregger’s Psyche

Cregger went into the writing for Weapons without knowing where it would lead him. He had recently lost a close friend and was feeling anger and grief, and simply started writing.

Something he explored in Barbarian is a point-of-view style of storytelling, and he dives even deeper in his second time around. In Weapons, he splits the film into six distinct chapters, each told through the eyes of a particular character: the teacher, the parent, the police officer, someone struggling with a drug addiction, the principal, and the only student who did not vanish.

Each of these characters represents a part of Cregger himself. Cregger struggled with alcohol, and characters here share experiences with that. He has struggled with grief and anger after losing someone close to him, and we see that as well. We also see the impact of adults on us as children, and the trauma, both major and micro, that can take hold and never let go.

Larkin Seiple and the Cinematography of Weapons

Beyond the intrigue, beyond the story of Weapons, the film is also just beautiful, which is ironic in a sense, as it’s made to appear drab and covered in the browns of suburban life – but this is all done purposefully. The framing is gorgeous, and the DP, Larkin Seiple, showcases his brilliance again. While he’s far from a household name, and he doesn’t have an enormous list of features under his belt, he’s someone to keep an eye on. He has already worked with the Daniels on Swiss Army Man and, of course, Everything Everywhere All at Once, and he was also the cinematographer behind the viral music video for “This Is America” from Childish Gambino.

In Weapons, he has a great handle on contrast ratios and the use of shadows as both motif and visual aid, as well as a tool of attention across the frame. In the highlights, we get some gorgeous blooming, a pleasing roll-off into the shadows, creating an effectively dreamy look.

Is Weapons a Horror Movie?

The film is generally described – perhaps because it’s the easiest shorthand – as a horror film, but Cregger doesn’t consider it a pure horror film. Even if Weapons isn’t scary, it still has the story; it still has the narrative threads to keep it interesting. This matters because Weapons isn’t particularly scary. There are a few moments, but for the most part, it’s slow, it’s tension-building, it’s a deeper, more human dread instead of traditional jump scares.

Given Cregger’s comedy background, it makes sense that there are a few laugh-out-loud moments. It’s not an incredibly funny film, and he took out a lot of the jokes he’d written because they needed to be authentic to the weirdness we’re seeing on screen.

Weapons also isn’t too concerned with the supernatural, although certain supernatural elements do form part of the backbone. It’s more of an internalized exploration of the human psyche.

So, all of this to say, Weapons isn’t all that scary. It’s not super funny. It’s a bit slow at times, particularly in the second act. And yet, it’s incredibly strong – strength that comes from Cregger’s confident direction. He doesn’t feel the need to play by every expected beat. He’s content to explore his inner demons through each character in a way that feels genuine and lived-in, rather than leaning on cheap scares.

Is Weapons Worth a Watch?

As a result of this willingness to buck the traditional horror formula, many average moviegoers might leave a little disappointed, particularly if they come in expecting to be scared out of their seats. The ending – and the overall structure – is deliberately ambiguous. Cregger gives us room to project our own psychology onto the narrative. While I have my interpretations, it’s difficult to go into much detail without straying into spoiler territory.

What I can say is that Weapons effectively showcases the various ways in which pain, grief, and loneliness can manifest. It also emphasizes the role adults have in the lives of children and how the seeds of abandonment in childhood can surface later in life.

Ultimately, if you’re a fan of elevated horror that isn’t just trying to stop you from sleeping for days on end, then Weapons will be a perfect film for you.