John Mulderig

As scripted by Jimmy Warden, director Elizabeth Banks’ dark comedy, “Cocaine Bear,” starts out as an amusing ensemble piece about eccentric characters brought into contact by bizarre circumstances.

Simple, straightforward and even naive, “The Blood of Jesus” is also, at times, dreamy and ethereal.

While this latest “Magic Mike” outing focuses more on tripping the light fantastic than undressing, sleazy behavior and wayward underlying values make it unacceptable nonetheless.

In the documentary “Lourdes” (Distrib Films), filmmakers Alban Teurlai and Thierry Demaiziere present a moving portrait of one of the world’s most popular pilgrimage sites and of the suffering people who are drawn to it.

It may be the end of the world as we know it in “Knock at the Cabin.” But, unlike R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe, no one in this offbeat but effective thriller feels fine.

By subverting its central trope, screenwriter Akela Cooper and director Gerard Johnstone serve up a wickedly funny treat in “M3GAN.”

The idea of incorporating iconic author Edgar Allan Poe, the inventor of the modern detective story, into a whodunit would seem like a winning one.

Grown fans of Gerard Butler and of the action genre may find director Jean-François Richet’s aviation adventure “Plane” (Lionsgate) appealing in some respects.