It may fumble its final moments but Weapons builds on the successes of filmmaker Zach Cregger's previous effort Barbarian, harnessing many of the same techniques to create a more sophisticated, polished and consistently engrossing horror film. Weapons shows that it's entirely possible to craft a pitch-black fairy tale set in the modern world.

Weapons is one of those movies that is extremely difficult to discuss, because you don't want to ruin a single one of the horror mystery's many surprises.

Especially since the film's marketing has actually managed to stay hush-hush about what is really going on.

It's safe to say, though, that writer-director Zach Cregger has returned to the same techniques and tricks that he used to make Airbnb cautionary tale Barbarian, and put them to more polished use in Weapons.

Shifting between multiple characters' perspectives, and unfurling in a non-linear manner, Weapons opens with a child's narration that sets the film up as true crime meets dark modern fairy tale.

One night in a typical Midwestern town, at exactly 2.17am, all the children (barring one) from the same elementary school class exit their homes and vanish into the darkness.

That's the set-up.

Weapons primarily takes place one month...