The spooky season is here, and that means scary movies to watch. “Weapons,” a new scary movie streaming now that has very high reviews (93% Rotten Tomatoes and a 7.5 IMDB rating), streaming on Apple Tv, Amazon, etc. might just be worth checking out.
“Weapons” is a creepy suspense/mystery thriller that is bound to keep you on your toes. The plot sets you in Pennsylvania, where 17 students go missing from an elementary school class of 18 when they all unexpectedly run out of their homes at 2:17 A.M with their arms out, and only one student named Alex is left behind. The town is then left to investigate what has happened and where they have gone? The town focuses its blame on the teacher of the class, Justine, played by Julia Garner most famous for her role as Ruth in “Ozark.” Why did one student not vanish? Why did they disappear? Where are they going? What is happening?
As the story progresses and the questions are answered the audience is treated to solid acting performances which is one of this movies strengths. In addition to the acting, which gives good emotion to the characters and highlights how they feel, the characters feel believable due to their realistic reactions to the scary event. Next, the movie has decent pacing in the fact that the story keeps you on your toes, so the movie isn’t dry and keeps you wrapped into the mystery. Finally, the movie has all elements a horror movie should have, like suspense, mystery, disturbing graphics, and occasional scary/creepy moments with directing that highlights those elements.
What are the weaknesses of this movie? First, the characters may feel believable, but the movie focuses on so many characters in the town that some feel underdeveloped or left out. Next, some parts in the plot can feel like they lack logic and feel quite unrealistic For example, there’s a scene where Alex, the student who didn’t disappear, frequently goes into a grocery store by himself and buys lots and lots of soup and no one suspects anything might be wrong. But it is easy to not mind the lack of logic and realism, because so many horror movies are like this.
So, is it worth watching? Well, this movie can be compared to the 2021 film “Black Phone” in the way that both the movies’ center focus is to be a suspense/mystery thriller, so if you like that kind of movie then I think “Weapons” is a good choice. Finally, if you like horror, want a creepy suspenseful movie to watch, and think this movie sounds good. “Black Phone 2” is in theaters now. With a IMDB rating of 6.7 and a Rotten Tomatoes score of 74%, it could also be a good bet for the spooky season.
