“Weapons” – An Exercise in Classic Horror
by J. Nagle
Whether through its premise, direction, or overall tone, Zach Cregger’s Weapons has been making waves throughout theaters. Since its release on August 8th, the supernatural horror has grossed over $149 million in the box office, running laps around its $38 million budget. With an ensemble as well-cast as they are well-performed, it’s easy to see why the film has brought in so many cinemagoers—horror enthusiasts and rare horror viewers alike.
Zach Cregger (Barbarian, Whitest Kids U’Know) brings a unique direction to the table that stands out from much of today’s horror filmmaking, going back to a traditional classic style of horror narratives by combining mystery elements with the off-color humor that pioneered his comedy troupe, Whitest Kids U’Know. Incidentally, the WKUK YouTube page has already taken advantage of Cregger’s success by reposting a sketch to their YouTube channel from the season 2 premiere of their titular comedy show. In the sketch, Cregger plays a fictionalized version of himself directing a scene in which two detectives investigate a murder.
Weapons revels in a storytelling method that follows a series of accounts from one character to the next, concerning the same event and how it comes to its resolution. The accounts often take place concurrently with that which the audience has already seen, often offering a different angle or exposition on the circumstances of a given story beat. This allows for the narrative to stay fresh even in the case of repeating itself, a choice which feels more intentional than it initially lets on. This includes how one character may remember their actions versus how another experienced them, giving a glimpse into how certain characters in the ensemble cast may have viewed the phenomenon differently.
Beyond Weapons, Cregger and the rest of the WKUK troupe have previewed Mars at the Tribeca Film Festival in the past year, an animated sci-fi comedy that will be their final work as a group. This contains the final performance from the late Trevor Moore, the founder of WKUK who tragically passed away on August 7th of 2021, four years and one day prior to the release of Weapons. In an interview with GQ, Cregger describes the writing of Weapons in the wake of Moore’s passing as himself venting “about that overwhelming emotion you get when you lose someone close to you…[s]o he didn’t explode.” While Weapons is a far cry from the comedic endeavors Cregger and Moore would explore throughout their tenure with WKUK, elements of their humor seep through in some of the line deliveries and acting direction, making for a narrative that feels sincere, one that doesn’t feel like it talks down to its viewers.
Weapons is now playing in theaters worldwide.