Weapons: A Big Step for Modern Horror Movies

by Javier Albite

Weapons Official Trailer

“Weapons” arrives as one of 2025’s most intriguing horror mysteries, blending psychological unease with grounded, character-driven tension.

Zach Cregger, fresh off the success of “Barbarian,” crafts a film that leans less on jump scares and more on building a slow, unsettling dread. Backed by a standout ensemble cast, the movie unfolds around a disturbing case: seventeen students from the same classroom who vanish without warning on the same night at the exact same moment.

It is a premise that immediately hooks the audience, setting the stage for a horror experience that is as bizarre as it is gripping.

Review

While Weapons doesn’t rely on constant scares, the moments of terror it does deliver are very effective. Cregger’s restraint allows each frightening sequence to hit hard. The movie's best strong suit is the unbridled insanity of the story. Without spoilers, the main plot twist is one of the craziest story elements I've seen in any modern film, let alone horror. But the weirdness of it all really sets that creepy atmosphere. All the unusual story beats make for an oddly engaging horror setting.

Impact on Future Horror

Movies like Weapons could signal a shift in the horror genre, one where atmosphere, narrative experimentation, and psychological tension take precedence over formulaic scares. By embracing ambiguity and emotional horror, Weapons challenges audiences to think as much as they feel, proving that true fear doesn’t always come from what jumps out at you, but from what quietly unsettles your mind.