Weapons wastes no time in building intrigue.  A young narrator explains that at 2:17am one evening, 17 young children from a small town ran out the front door of their respective homes and disappeared into the night.  The common link is that each kid was part of the same class at elementary school and taught by the popular Ms Gandy.  A month has since passed with the parents’ grief turning into anger.  They’re frustrated by the lack of answers coming from local authorities.

Writer-director Zach Cregger, who burst into the spotlight three years ago with the impressive Barbarian, splits the film into six chapters which each telling the story from a different perspective.  There’s Ms Gandy (Brolin), a frustrated parent (Brolin), an alcoholic police officer (Ehrenreich), a homeless drug user (Abrams), the school principal (Wong), and a quiet young boy (Christopher).  Each segment is like a jigsaw puzzle piece.  You can appreciate the “full” picture until you see them all woven together.  It’s not a new cinematic technique but Cregger uses it to great effect.

If you’re a fan of horror-thrillers, Weapons delivers in spades.  This genre can often box itself into a corner by building early suspense but then realising there’s no logical path to a credible finale.  That’s not the case here.  I won’t reveal spoilers… but I will say ending fits with the material, doesn’t overstay its welcome, and provides food for thought (don’t expect everything to be explained).  The direction is top notch with Cregger using a myriad of ways to extract tension – from a simple lock of hair being cut from someone’s fringe… to a bloody battle at a gas station… through to a peculiar way of running.

The characters have also been well crafted with emphasis on Emmy winner Julia Garner (Ozark) as Ms Gandy.  She’s a heroic, inquisitive person worth rooting for but, at the same time, we see her flaws.  Her good intentions are often undermined by poor decision making.  The whole cast deserve praise.  The experienced Josh Brolin (Milk) and Alden Ehrenreich (Solo: A Star Wars Story) showcase their talents with nuanced performances while 9-year-old Cary Christopher displays a range of emotion as the unsettled Alex.

Holding your attention from start to finish, Weapons is not a film you’ll easily forget.