Weapons film review: This fascinating thriller will leave you with slightly furrowed brow and palpitating heart

WEAPONS

(18) 128mins

★★★★☆

THINGS that go bump in the night have long been a horror-story theme. But what about things that disappear in the night?

That is the opening of this fascinating thriller when 17 kids run out of their houses at 2.17am in a US town.

No one knows why, or where they have gone. They ran down the street, arms spread like aeroplanes, and then vanished.

They are all in the same primary school class, taught by Justine (Julia Garner). Only one little boy remains, Alex (Cary Christopher).

We meet the pair a month after the disappearances, where tensions in the small town are running high.

The devastated parents think Justine and Alex must know more than they are telling police and become crazed with frustration.

The eerie feeling of the quiet suburban streets — and an entire town after one teacher — builds the feeling that more very bad things will happen soon.

And boy, they really do.

There’s an ensemble cast and the film is divided into several chapters.

Justine is the stressed teacher who is relying heavily on vodka, and Archer Graff (Josh Brolin) is the broken father who watches the CCTV of his son running out of the house on loop and will do anything for answers.

There’s also a troubled police officer, thieving junkie and the school’s head teacher who have their own different journeys around the horror of the town.

Oh, and Alex — the boy who was left behind — played superbly by young Christopher. His flat answers to questions and slow blinks have your palms a bit clammy.

The few horror tropes that are used — dream sequences and jumps — are done with class and control.

Written and directed by Zach Cregger, following on from his breakout and brilliant Barbarian, this often funny and ferocious film is intriguing until the end.

While most of the film gives you little to no clue of what is behind the children’s sudden disappearance, Cregger truly lets loose in the final half hour.

The foot is slammed on to the horror pedal and I found myself watching much of it through my fingers.

It’s both weird and wild — and certainly does not attempt to wrap an explanation up in a nice little bow for the audience.

You’ll leave with a slightly furrowed brow and a palpitating heart.

FREAKIER FRIDAY

(PG) 111mins

★★★☆☆

IN 2003’s Freaky Friday, therapist Tess Coleman ( Jamie Lee Curtis ) and her guitar-playing daughter Anna ( Lindsay Lohan ) temporarily inhabit each other’s bodies and lives.

In this sequel two decades later, Anna is a music producer and single mother to teen Harper (Julia Butters), while Tess records podcasts and plays pickleball.

Anna’s forthcoming marriage to Eric, who has daughter Lily, will create a blended family – but it’s a union only the bride and groom are happy about.

Then fortune-teller fun – which sees Anna switch bodies with Harper, while Tess and Lily swap – allows them to see things through each other’s eyes.

Comical silliness and heart-warming schmaltz ensues, with typical Boomer, Millennial and Gen X characteristics teased for decent laughs.

The teens are forced to use Facebook and listen to Coldplay while the adults relish regaining their youthful metabolism.

It’s best when the elders play younger personas, and Jamie Lee Curtis is a treat throughout, flexing her funny bones.

A comfortable and entertaining Lohan is her perfect feel-good foil.

THE KINGDOM

(15) 112mins

★★★★☆

ORGANISED crime on the French island of Corsica makes for both a bloodthirsty and beautiful backdrop for Julien Colonna’s gripping Mob drama set in the 1990s.

Mafia racketeering in Sicily has often been portrayed on screen, but this location, along with some standout performances, feels like a fresh take on the much-told gang wars narrative.

And Colonna knows his stuff – he comes from a Corsican family with Mob connections.

Teenager Leisa (a brilliant Ghjuvanna Benedetti) is the daughter of widowed faction boss Pierre-Paul.

She is enjoying carefree days at her aunt’s house, playing on the beach with her cousins and flirting with boys.

But without warning she is taken off to spend time with her father, who is planning revenge after a failed attempt on his life.

Leisa bonds with him by fishing, shooting boar, practising her rifle aim and sharpening her awareness of underworld politics.

The pace may be slow at times, but the captivating performances, along with a plot of murders, family dynamics and revenge, will hold your attention to the end.

Laura Stott