--- title: "Weapons: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/weapons/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/weapons" critics_score: 76 critics_reviews: 21 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Weapons (2025): what the critics said Critics' score 76 from 21 reviews: 16 positive, 4 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics like Weapons, and a good many like it a great deal. The praise clusters around Cregger’s chapter structure, which tells the story of the disappearing children from several overlapping points of view, and around the way the film keeps horror and comedy in the same room without either spoiling the other. Amy Madigan’s turn as Aunt Gladys is named again and again as the performance that lifts it, and several reviews single out the final chapter as the pay-off the puzzle earns. The reservations are consistent too: a minority find the film slick but shallow, more weird than frightening, with the Financial Times and the Guardian both complaining that the ideas run thin once the mystery is solved. Little White Lies thinks it retreads Barbarian. The New Yorker is the one outright dissenter, finding the ending a gross-out joke. The spread is wide at the bottom and crowded at the top. ## Time Out — Phil de Semlyen Rating 5/5. 6 August 2025. The critic calls it one of the best horror movies of the year and possibly the best comedy, hailing its wildly creepy, bleakly hilarious invention and satisfying final reel that ties up the knotty narrative. They single out the playful, unexpected path and the way it packs playfulness and invention for praise. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/weapons-review-2025) ## IndieWire — David Ehrlich Rating A. 6 August 2025. The critic hails the film as a wildly satisfying genre epic and antidote to recent trauma-focused horror, praising its ambitious cross between domestic horror and sketch comedy. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/weapons-horror-movie-review-zach-cregger-1235143451/) ## Empire — John Nugent Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 6 August 2025. The critic calls it a hugely accomplished horror achievement and significant step up from Barbarian. They single out the masterful balancing of serious themes with scares, humour and a cathartic, well-staged finale. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/weapons/) ## The Times Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 7 August 2025. The critic hails the film as gorgeous, terrifying and the best thriller of the year, praising its remarkable handling of the story of disappearing children. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/weapons-film-review-vwq35m9sp) ## Los Angeles Times — Amy Nicholson Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 7 August 2025. The critic calls it a spellbinding, disorderly mystery that layers overlapping perspectives to reveal the truth piecemeal. Cregger excels at fusing the ordinary with the outrageous and leaves viewers with potent unanswered questions. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2025-08-07/weapons-review-josh-brolin-julia-garner-amy-madigan-zach-cregger) ## The AV Club — Jacob Oller Rating B+. 6 August 2025. The critic calls it a delightfully nasty, bold, funny, and endlessly scary follow-up that spirals from unimaginable loss with clever mystery, likable characters, and playful horror. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/weapons-review) ## Radio Times Rating 4/5. 6 August 2025. The critic hails it as an unnerving, riveting and thunderously entertaining horror epic that more than delivers on its promise with a propulsive, perfectly paced thriller structure. They single out the deft juggling of tones, including black humour and camp, along with the brilliant reveal for praise. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/app/weapons-review-one-of-the-best-horror-films-of-recent-years/) ## The Observer — Guy Lodge Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 8 August 2025. The critic praises the film’s eerie storytelling, strong performances and command of sensation while highlighting its depiction of US blame culture and community breakdown as particularly effective. [Read the review](https://observer.co.uk/culture/film/article/the-horror-of-weapons-is-its-depiction-of-us-blame-culture) ## The Telegraph Rating 4/5. 7 August 2025. The critic calls it a deranged horror that ramps up from eerie suburban drama to a twisted tale of mass child disappearance, delivering a knockout finale that is twisted, hilarious and savage. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/weapons-review-zach-cregger/) ## Vulture Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 8 August 2025. The critic finds the film a twisty-turny hoot that navigates an unnerving middle way between metaphor and piffle, with an oblique structure enhancing dread and a charmingly ridiculous direction. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/review-zach-creggers-weapons-is-a-twisty-turny-hoot.html) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 7 August 2025. The critic praises Cregger's skill at sustaining an ominous mood in a horror film centered on missing children. The narrative structure and delayed reveals build tension effectively around the central mystery. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/07/movies/weapons-review.html) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 5 August 2025. The critic praises the film's expert craft, atmospheric style, strong cast, and chapter structure but finds it ultimately lacking in psychological depth or substance, more consistently weird than scary. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/weapons-review-julia-garner-josh-brolin-zach-cregger-horror-1236337427/) ## Variety — Peter Debruge Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 5 August 2025. The review highlights the hypnotic, multi-perspective structure that keeps imaginations engaged for most of the runtime. While the ending narrows the mystery's scope, Cregger crafts a twisted, memorable bedtime story with strong performances and atmosphere. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2025/film/reviews/weapons-review-1236478324/) ## Financial Times — Danny Leigh Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 7 August 2025. The critic praises the luminous visuals, jarringly funny moments and hyper-eerie mood but complains that the horror turns hokey and the film has the depth of a puddle despite its ambition. [Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/1f9fd365-d5ba-4c98-838d-9a0ab9031b87) ## Little White Lies — Hannah Strong Rating 4/3/3. 8 August 2025. The critic finds the film’s strong start and effective scares undermined by scattered ideas and a tendency to fall back on familiar territory from the director’s previous work. They single out the spiky humour and Amy Madigan’s scene-stealing turn for praise while complaining that the big reveal and overall approach feel like a rehash. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/weapons) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 6 August 2025. The critic finds Cregger’s follow-up an initially ambitious yet ultimately simplistic ensemble horror that offers jolting moments but lacks substance and depth. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/aug/06/weapons-review-zach-creggers) ## Slant Magazine — Taylor Williams Rating 2/4. 6 August 2025. The critic notes the blend of horror and comedy succeeds overall with grounded characters and invoked social issues, though some fake-outs and the climax's comedy undercut tension. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/weapons-review-zach-cregger-josh-brolin-julia-garner/) ## The New Yorker — Richard Brody Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 8 August 2025. The review finds the film a conventional but slick mystery that ultimately reduces its unsettling premise to a gross-out joke and superficial effects. Cregger's approach misses deeper resonances in favor of predictable genre thrills. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/08/18/weapons-movie-review-harvest) ## Screen Daily 5 August 2025. The critic describes an intricately plotted, supremely twisty horror thriller that takes its time laying out an elaborate story before the myriad strands come together in immensely satisfying fashion. They single out the gripping final chapter that delivers sustained terrors while noting the puzzle-box plot risks the mystery outshining the payoff. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/weapons-review-julia-garner-and-josh-brolin-lead-barbarian-filmmakers-inventive-new-horror/5207519.article) ## Sight and Sound — Kim Newman 8 August 2025. The critic praises Cregger’s elaborate, mosaic-structured follow-up to Barbarian as a deliberately tricky gruesome puzzle-box horror that justifies its length through its labyrinthine path from puzzlement to understanding. They single out Amy Madigan’s startlingly eccentric turn as Aunt Gladys for leavening the horror with absurdist comedy while delivering jolts. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/weapons-gruesome-puzzle-box-horror-jolts-jump-scares) ## /Film — Chris Evangelista Rating 9/10. 28 July 2025. The critic calls it a twisted, funny, and scary suburban nightmare that blends horror and humor effectively while tapping into modern fears. They single out the ensemble structure and macabre finale for praise. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/1921974/weapons-2025-movie-review/) ## Collider — Ross Bonaime Rating 8/10. 7 August 2025. The critic praises Cregger for balancing horror and comedy perfectly in an ambitious, inventive film that may be the best horror of 2025. They single out the multi-perspective structure, tense direction, and standout performances from the ensemble, especially Amy Madigan. [Read the review](https://collider.com/weapons-review-zach-cregger-josh-brolin-julia-garner/) ## Polygon — Jesse Hassenger Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 5 August 2025. The critic says Cregger outdoes himself with a more conventional yet unpredictable horror drama that delivers a satisfying payoff, eerie imagery, and effective scares. They single out the multiple-POV structure inspired by Magnolia and the atmospheric, momentum-maintaining direction. [Read the review](https://www.polygon.com/weapons-review-zach-cregger/) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond 5 August 2025. Cregger delivers another impressive horror mystery with a brilliant ensemble led by Garner and Brolin. The film stands out for its creepy atmosphere, strong performances, and layered storytelling that builds on the director's previous work. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2025/08/weapons-review-josh-brolin-julia-garner-zach-cregger-horror-1236479231/) ## Den of Geek — David Crow Rating 4 out of 5. 6 August 2025. The review praises Cregger's follow-up to Barbarian as a ruthlessly diabolical and twisted studio thriller that cleverly reveals its American Gothic mystery. It singles out the novelistic puzzle-box structure, tonal mashup, and uniformly excellent performances for particular commendation. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/weapons-review-most-twisted-studio-movie-of-the-year/) ## Paste — Jarrod Jones Rating 8.9. 6 August 2025. The critic commends Cregger's sharper comic-horror instincts and the film's brutal, engrossing exploration of loss, paranoia, and social rot in a small town. They single out the chapter structure, ensemble chemistry between Garner and Brolin, and its wicked folk-horror spin. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/weapons/weapons-review-zach-cregger-horror-movie-barbarian-plot-twist-josh-brolin-julia-garner-children) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/weapons.md