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New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Watch Julia Garner Visit a Creepy Home in ‘Weapons'
In 'Anatomy of a Scene,' we ask directors to reveal the secrets that go into making key scenes in their movies. See new episodes in the series on Fridays. You can also watch our collection of more than 150 videos on YouTube and subscribe to our YouTube channel. A teacher follows a student home and gets more than she bargained for in this scene from 'Weapons,' the latest twisty horror film from the writer and director Zach Cregger ('Barbarian'). The movie involves a classroom of children who go missing in a small town, save for one boy, Alex (Cary Christopher). His teacher, Justine (Julia Garner), has been trying to solve this mystery, meeting roadblocks along the way, so she decides to track Alex back to his house to see if she can learn more. As she goes to his front door, she notices newspaper covering all the windows. Narrating the sequence, Cregger said, 'It was fun to try and create the tension here by just being in her P.O.V. and studying the newspaper as she would have studied it. And also, it was really fun to play with the diegetic sound of the cicadas and crank the chorus of insects to become the score.' Read the 'Weapons' review. Sign up for the Movies Update newsletter and get a roundup of reviews, news, Critics' Picks and more.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
In the spellbinding mystery 'Weapons,' six characters reveal bloody slices of the truth
The rise of evil is more believable than its defeat. Implausible horror movies ask you to buy that a curse can be broken, a killer bested, nightmares tidied into a neat resolution. But filmmaker Zach Cregger enjoys making a mess. His buzzy breakout, 2022's 'Barbarian,' tangled several narratives in one basement, jolting audiences with a bold tone shift and a conclusion that darted away before we could ask questions. 'Weapons' is an even grander statement of disorder-by-design. A compellingly sloppy tale, it splices together a half-dozen protagonists and no heroes — these six spiraling victims never grasp the full story behind the violence. An unnamed little girl narrator claims this is a true crime kept secret, as the locals are ashamed they can't explain a thing. Sure, sure. The setup alone seizes our attention. A classroom of third graders has vanished in the middle of the night, each child running headlong into the shadows with their limbs outstretched like paper planes. In an eerie montage, editor Joe Murphy shows us the goodbye sprint of all 17 kids — we understand the scale of the town's tragedy even though only two of them get names. When the story picks up a month later, none of the lost children have come home. What's going on? And why was one child, Alex, played with solemnity by Cary Christopher, left behind? Cregger has said that he started writing the script before he knew the answer, and the plotting shares that sense of discovery. The main characters' tales aren't manipulated by forced coincidences — they simply overlap. Each section fills out the fuller picture as though Cregger is layering transparencies on top of an overhead projector. The first segment follows the children's teacher, Justine (Julia Garner), who is under harsh scrutiny at an assembly crowded with distraught parents who accuse her of being either negligent or complicit. Her most vocal critic, Archer (Josh Brolin), is the father of the class bully, now missing. Principal Marcus (Benedict Wong) tries to protect Justine from the heckles (and her own bad decision-making) but the shouts of "lock her up" chase Justine straight to the liquor store, where cinematographer Larkin Seiple's steady shot through the booze aisles tells us she's beelined to the vodka many times before. Read more: The 18 summer movies we're most excited about Justine's opening section is the longest, and it showcases the film's two key fixations: failure and people tip-toeing around peering through cracks. (There's enough gliding hallway footage to fill several listings on Zillow.) Garner excels at pale, quiet girls like Justine who are all nervous energy and self-destruction. Several of the awful things that happen to her aren't mystical at all. An aggressive confrontation with her ex-boyfriend's wife (June Diane Raphael) is her own darned fault, and when she tries to do an ill-conceived stakeout, she gets drunk and falls asleep. An ordinary script would put Justine at the center of the action so we can have fun watching her make one mistake after another until she magically saves the day. But she's not up to the challenge, and Cregger has other characters to introduce. Half of them are less preoccupied by the mystery of the missing kids as they are with the drama of their own lives, from tension with their boss to a desperate need for cash. There's a police officer named Paul (Alden Ehrenreich) and his main obsession, James (Austin Abrams), a junkie who is so caught up in getting his next fix that he lives in his own splinter comedy. It only ever seems to rain in his scenes, and when spooked, James dives into his tent head-first like a cartoon cat. Clownish Gladys (Amy Madigan, meddlesome and needy) rounds out the ensemble, sporting bright '70s polyester leisure suits while adding a dash of Italian giallo melodramatics. She hints at what 'Suspiria' would look like transported to the suburbs. The retro needle-drops by George Harrison and Percy Sledge give the film its own style, as does the fantastic main musical theme (by Hays Holladay, Ryan Holladay and Cregger) that's a harmony of harp, piano and rattling bones. Horror fans have seen plenty of unlucky cops ring the right doorbell at the wrong time, only to get mercilessly dispatched. Knowing Paul's name and his own problems doesn't add that much to the overall storyline, but it does put a fun spin on clichéd beats, even if Cregger is too much of a prankster to want us to feel extra empathy for the guy. Elevating side characters to main characters means there's too much going on for us to work up much empathy for anyone except Christopher's abandoned boy. But it does give us a sense of the world as a place where the ordinary is fused to the outrageous, where normal life and normal houses and normal people can be suddenly, brutally destroyed. Read more: The 27 best movie theaters in Los Angeles Cregger is great with details. He gets a fantastic, audience-wide gasp just from the noise of a door opening off-screen. There's as much pathos in the production design as there is in the people. One character, for reasons you'll observe, wordlessly switches from soup cans that require them to use a can opener to ones with a pull tab. Nobody mentions the change, but when you spot it, it breaks your heart. Here, as in 'Barbarian,' Cregger understands the scary hush of a residential street and the perils of not knowing, or trusting, your neighbors. Part of the issue is that kindness has, in the community's time of crisis, been deemed 'inappropriate' — the word Principal Marcus uses when chastising Justine for driving a stranded kid home. (Later, however, his strict boundaries seem smart.) But it's still a cold statement on inhumanity when Justine flees into a convenience store for safety, only for the clerk to order her back outside. The dialogue's percussive f-bombs get a laugh and make the point that people in crisis can't come up with a snappy comeback. A former sketch comic, Cregger knows how to work a crowd. The combination of his assurance and his characters' confusion is wonderful in the moment, as though you're listening to a spiel from someone who sounds crazy but might be making all the sense in the world. (A scene just like that happens in the movie.) The ending is strong and satisfying and leaves you discontented in all the right ways, even as 'Weapons'' spell lifts after you leave the theater. Some of the ideas that felt significant in the darkness don't stand up to daylight: the dream sequences, an image of a floating gun, the film's own title — which doesn't seem to go much further than Archer's description of the children running like "heat-seeking missiles.' It's particularly annoying that the end credits insist that the shape of a triangle is, for whatever reason, symbolically significant. Still, I like the idea that terrible questions don't always get answers — and I hope Cregger keeps asking them. Sign up for Indie Focus, a weekly newsletter about movies and what's going on in the wild world of cinema. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Buzz Feed
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Weapons Just Rewired My Brain, And I'm Obsessed
So, Weapons is a wild new horror film from Zach Cregger — of Barbarian (2022) fame — and I really think you should know it's easily one of the best films (and not just horror) of 2025. Like, the film literally has a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Now, in case you haven't heard of it ( you WILL), here's what it's about: Weapons centers on a disturbing event where a group of children, all students from the same class, mysteriously vanish one night at 2:17 a.m., leaving behind just one child from their class. And the cast is stacked with stars Julia Garner, Josh Brolin, Cary Christopher, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Benedict Wong, and Amy Madigan. But should you need ANYMORE convincing, here are my thoughts on this soon-to-be-iconic horror film: As someone who loooooved Barbarian, I had high hopes walking into Weapons, which I hate doing because I feel like I always set myself up for disappointment. Thankfully, this was not the case here. With Weapons, there's still a wild concept, but this time around, the film is more ambitious, a lot bigger (which, I guess, isn't SUPER hard to do considering Barbarian mainly takes place in a creepy house/basement), and has a totally different vibe than Barbarian (but in a good way). But, rest assured, Cregger still brings his expertise in balancing horror with humor with plenty of darkly humorous moments. The film cleverly unfolds primarily through a chapter‑based structure, with each segment shifting viewpoint among the key players in the story. And the story, while fairly straightforward, also examines some interesting themes like collective trauma and grief, toxic masculinity, paranoia, and the dangers of mass hysteria. Unsurprisingly, the entire cast gives A+++ performances. (Shout out to newcomer Cary Christopher, who plays Alex, the sole kid left in the classroom.) The general look and feel of the film will give you the creeps and, perhaps, nightmares for days. And in case you're wondering, YES, there are a few jump scares. But they're really good ones, so well worth you can handle that kinda thing. But it's a PERFECT "watch it with an audience" movie. Like, I'm not exaggerating when I say that the audience I was with was literally screaming, laughing, clapping, and even cheering at several points throughout the film (myself included!). TL;DR — Weapons is really effing good, and if you love horror films, 10/10 would recommend. Weapons opens in theaters and IMAX nationwide on August 8, 2025 and you can watch the official trailer here to wet your whistle: Are you a fan of dark, weird, creepy content, AND horror films? Subscribe to the That Got Dark newsletter to get your weekly dopamine fix of the macabre delivered RIGHT to your inbox! (There's even a weekly horror film recommendation.)
Pink Villa
29-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
Weapons Movie Explained: What Zach Cregger's 2025 Horror Mystery Is Really About
Weapons, directed and written by Zach Cregger, is one of the most talked-about horror movies of 2025. Set in the fictional town of Maybrook, the story begins one month after a shocking event where 17 third-grade children leave their homes in the middle of the night and vanish without a trace, except for one student. The only child who didn't disappear is Alex, played by Cary Christopher. Video footage shows the missing kids running with their arms out at their sides, but no one can explain why. Their teacher, Justine Gandy (Julia Garner), becomes a key figure in the mystery. Though she has a history of misconduct and an unspoken drinking problem, she genuinely cares for her students and begins her own investigation after being placed on leave. A multi-character puzzle of horror The film weaves together the stories of several characters linked to the children and each other. Josh Brolin plays Archer, a grieving father desperate for answers. Alden Ehrenreich plays Paul, Justine's ex-boyfriend and a beat cop, who has his own set of issues and is not assigned to the case. Benedict Wong appears as Marcus, the school principal, and Austin Abrams plays James, a meth-addicted thief. As these characters' stories unfold, new clues and perspectives come into play. Each character-driven vignette adds layers to the overall narrative, which slowly reveals the horrifying truth. The film doesn't follow a traditional linear structure. The review by Cinema Blend explained that it isn't just a Rashomon-style collection of different perspectives, but rather an anthology-style movie with a single continuity and interconnected characters. This unique format keeps the audience engaged and constantly guessing. Here's what makes weapons stand out Zach Cregger, known for Barbarian, brings back his signature storytelling style. The movie is filled with jump scares, silence, and brutal horror without ever feeling cheap. According to Cinema Blend, the film's editing by Joe Murphy (from Barbarian) and cinematography by Larkin Seiple help elevate its visual and emotional impact. Weapons is set to release on August 8, 2025, and is rated R for 'strong bloody violence and grisly images, language throughout, some sexual content, and drug use.' It runs for 128 minutes and stars Julia Garner, Josh Brolin, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Benedict Wong, Cary Christopher, June Diane Raphael, Toby Huss, and Amy Madigan.
Time of India
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
'Weapons' trailer: Josh Brolin and Julia Garner find themselves caught in terrifying mystery
The makers of the film starring , , , , Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, and , 'Weapons', unveiled the trailer for the horror film. 'Weapons' is an upcoming American horror film written, produced, and directed by Zach Cregger. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It follows a small community after 17 kids mysteriously disappear overnight. In their new thriller Weapons, Josh Brolin and Julia Garner are caught up in a terrible mystery. "When all but one child from the same class mysteriously vanish on the same night at exactly the same time, a community is left questioning who or what is behind their disappearance," reads an official synopsis for Weapons, according to People. The new trailer opens with an elementary school scene along with a child's voiceover narrating, "This is a true story that happened in my town. So this one Wednesday is like a normal day for the whole school, but today was different." "Every other class had all their kids, but Mrs. Gandy's room was totally empty. And do you know why? Because the night before, at 2:17 in the morning, every kid woke up, got out of bed, walked downstairs and into the dark," the child continued. "And they never came back," as per the outlet. In the clip, the characters played by Brolin and Garner are then seen trying to unravel the mystery. Brolin's character addresses a group of anxious parents, "I don't understand at all. Why just her classroom? Why only hers?!" An initial teaser for the movie released on April 21 showed children running out of homes in a suburban neighborhoods the middle of the night as Brolin's character is heard discussing the situation with someone else, according to People. 'Weapons' is in theatres on August 8.
