Weapons, the latest horror film by Zach Cregger, has been a smashing success, by virtually all accounts. The film has grossed almost $72 million at the box office against an estimated $38 million budget, and it’s currently sitting at a 94 percentapproval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Personally, I adored the film, particularly for its unique chapter-based structure, but that formatreminds me a lot of one of the most divisive video games ever.
The film follows different Point of View characters, letting the audience see most of the same events from a new perspective and adding more context and inching closer along the narrative timeline until it reaches a crescendo. Then, it suddenly switches to another character. For video game fans, that might sound very familiar if they have playedThe Last of Us Part 2.
Weapons & The Last Of Us Part 2 Have Similar Structures
Differing POVs About The Same Events & Flashbacks
WeaponsandThe Last Of Us Part 2are structured in chapters. Lead characters Justine Gandy and Ellie are the anchor points of their respective narratives, but thePOV shifts away from them quite a few times.Weaponsconnecting points between the POVs are less defined until near the end of the film, whereas it’s clear from the moment players take control ofAbby inPart 2that the story that follows is a different look at the same days of events.
That being said, the generalfeelof theWeaponsPOV shifts isa lot likethe shift from Ellie and her flashbacks, to Abby and her flashbacks, to The Farm with Ellie, to Santa Barbara with Abby, and then back to Ellie for Santa Barbara and The Farm. We get more information aboutthe overarching narrativewith each switch, butit’s not until players finish Abby’s Seattle sectionof the game that the narrative moves forward.
The Story Structure Is A Benefit To Both Weapons & Last Of Us 2
Haunting Stories About Perspective
The Last Of Us Part 2is one of themost controversial gamesever made, and while most of that is aimed at Joel’s early death,a lot of criticism was made about the game’s narrative structure. I don’t agree. I thinkPart 2’s story is stronger with the flashbacks and the sudden switch to Abby.
Abby is a mystery throughout the first half of the game, and in a story about how every action affects someone else, the juxtaposition between Ellie and Abby’s similar philosophies and wants ismore heartbreaking when we’re allowed to see the other’s perspective. We learn that Abby isn’t a villain by any stretch; she’s, in essence, a younger, female Joel, who failed to protect her family, much likeJoel failed to protect Sarahin the first game.
InWeapons, we get to see how well-meaning but flawed Justine is, and also how the children’s disappearance affects not just the parents of the town or the teachers, but everyone, from a policeman to a homeless drug addict, and everyone in between. That powerful look at perspective makesWeaponsandThe Last of Us Part 2two unforgettable stories about how one major event can change the course of lives forever.
