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***Weapons ***is one of the best horror films in recent memory, but it continues a worrying trend that is dragging down modern horror cinema. The second fright-flick from the mind of writer/director Zach Cregger, *Weapons *builds upon the success of 2022’s Barbarian, which was one of the highlights of its year.

However, there’s a consistent issue with Zach Cregger’s horror films, and it speaks to a much larger problem in the genre. There are so many new voices in horror, and the overall cinematic quality of the films has increased exponentially. Unfortunately, one aspect of storytelling has been left behind, and nearly every new horror film is guilty.

Modern Horror Movies Don’t Know How To Stick The Landing

Most modern horror films struggle with paying off what they’ve set up. *Weapons *effectively builds tension by establishing a compelling mystery and taking things to darker places as the questions begin to get answered. However, the movie completely loses track of itself as soon as the mystery is solved, and the answer to the overarching question is a major letdown.

There is a lot of sound and fury in service of nothing, and such a clever movie suddenly becomes underdeveloped in the final act. Aunt Gladys is a parasitic witch who feeds on the children’s life force, a classic horror concept. However, she completely hijacks the last half of the film, leaving other characters to twist in the wind.

Justine and Archer don’t get any satisfying payoffs, because the film is too busy focusing on Gladys for too long. The cathartic final scene is a great last note, but it follows an entire act of wheel spinning. *Weapons *isn’t the only modern horror film that can’t stick the landing, and recent hits like *Longlegs *have committed the same sin.

A fascinating setup is squandered by a poorly thought-out conclusion that can’t match the quality of what came before. The machinations of the titular serial killer are creepy and nightmarish, but once the supernatural twist is revealed, it’s cheapened by hokey ideas. When posing such interesting questions, the answers must be even more exciting.

Barbarian Had The Same Issues As Weapons

**Barbarian established Zach Cregger as a new horror master, but it suffered from the same issues as Weapons. The sleeper hit was a lesson in effective tension throughout most of its running time, adding new details that only increased the fear. However, the movie then threw on the parking brake and dropped seemingly endless exposition to explain the monster.

Instead of weaving the exposition into the narrative seamlessly, the script dumps it on the audience before the final act when the movie then devolves into outright schlock. Both *Weapons *and Barbarian have something much deeper to say, as do most modern horror movies, but that doesn’t excuse them from narrative foibles.

*Weapons *is both better and worse than its predecessor, and it shows Cregger has evolved as a storyteller. He can deftly mix various character storylines, but still struggles to give them all a satisfying conclusion. Nevertheless, *Weapons *and *Barbarian *show that the filmmaker is adept at scaring the wits out of viewers, and his future looks terrifyingly bright.

Release Date August 8, 2025

Runtime 128 minutes

Director Zach Cregger

Justine Gandy

Archer Graff

Writers Zach Cregger

Producers Roy Lee, Miri Yoon, J.D. Lifshitz