Austin Abrams, from left, Benedict Wong, Julia Garner, Josh Brolin, Cary Christopher, Alden Ehrenreich, June Diane Raphael and Amy Madigan arrive at the premiere of "Weapons" on Thursday, July 31, 2025, at The United Theater on Broadway in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)

Zach Cregger’s “Weapons,” his highly touted follow up to “Barbarian” (2022), is the writer/director’s second horror film with a story that peaks in the first act, slides by with welcome doses of humor and wit, and then drops the ball by giving us an ending that is somehow both too much but also not quite enough. No spoilers here, though the wild conclusion of “Weapons” will undoubtedly be its legacy.

It begins in the dark, a soft voice telling a spooky tale (like so many great ghost stories I used to hear by campfire up at Camp Maluhia in my childhood). A hypnotic start portrays the unthinkable: One night, at exactly 2:17 a.m., 17 school children left their bedrooms, ran out into the night and were never seen again. The baffled, devastated parents blame the schoolteacher (played by Julia Garner), who has a questionable past and is harassed by the desperate townsfolk. Meanwhile, a local architect (played by Josh Brolin), studies the video feed of his son running into the dark of night, searching for clues.

Cregger doesn’t play the surreal premise for laughs and leans into the unease and fear it brings to a smalltown community. There are a lot of supporting players and the film breaks up the story into chapter headings, which are helpful at reminding us who everyone’s name is, but little else.

I found most of “Weapons” to be nutty and involving, and I appreciate how the narrative is powered by the patient storytelling and characters, not special effects. Large chunks of the plot are amusing character vignettes, which deceptively make us comfortable. Despite some jolting nightmare sequences, the most disturbing scenes (one, in particular, is set in a kitchen with an unwelcome visitor) take place in daylight.

Again, this is not a spoiler, just an observation: the hook of the story, with an unexplainable phenomenon overtaking a town, is reminiscent of “The Birds” (1962), though the biggest comparison is to Stephen King’s petrifying short story, “Gramma,” and the 1985 episode of “The Twilight Zone” that adapted it (the little boy in both versions are mirror images of one another). If you’re a King fan but never heard of “Gramma,” read the tale (you can find it in the anthology collection “Skeleton Crew”), then watch the terrifying TV adaptation. You’re welcome.

Garner is on a roll and Brolin is reliably excellent in everything. It’s nice to see Alden Ehrenreich shine in a meaty part, though it’s Amy Madigan’s Oscar-worthy turn as a dotty, outgoing aunt that makes the strongest impression. What Madigan does here is wonderful.

There are obvious tributes and stolen moments from “The Shining” (1980) and the freaky opening to “The Third Eye,” the British 1980s horror anthology that used to play on Nickelodeon and petrify kids who just wanted to watch “Double Dare.”

Most of the way, I was delighted to see the story build in a patient way. By the third act, when everything is out in the open, the filmmaking is so strong that you can almost overlook that, after all the momentum, the story finally hits a wall. Like the conclusion of last summer’s similarly haunting but overpraised “Longlegs,” this one is also in top form when it’s a mystery and all over the place when it finally reveals everything that’s up. I liked this one better than “Barbarian” and the dark, hilarious grand finale is more satisfying than anything in the prior film.

What does “Weapons” have to say on a metaphorical or satirical level? That distrust and mob groupthink is easily weaponized. Here’s another comparison: “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street,” among the more devastating and sadly timeless episodes of “The Twilight Zone.”

Cregger is clearly a fan of both King and Rod Serling, though the comparison isn’t entirely complimentary- both authors have crafted definitive works of genre but also, on occasion, crafted stories where the set up to the finish line was far stronger than the big reveal. At least here, when a much more expansive conclusion was needed, Cregger ends things with a spectacle so wild, this fits as a summer release.

Much of “Weapons” plays like a demented “Our Town” or, another King classic, “Needful Things,” as the startling change in behavior from seemingly normal people ranges from bizarre to petrifying. I know the movie works, because I came home from the theater and made sure, before bedtime, that my front door was locked.

(Three out of four stars)

Barry Wurst II is the founder of the Hawaii Film Critics Society and teaches film classes at University of Hawai’i Maui College.