Although the horror sequel “The Exorcist: Believer” (Universal) gets off to a reasonably promising start, it degenerates quickly. It ends up being a muddle both dramatically and, more significantly, in its treatment of religion.

Science fiction is often used as an allegorical vessel within which to explore real-life current events, and such is the case with “The Creator” (20th Century). Although primarily set in the year 2070, this thinking person’s war drama takes for its main topic the timely subject of artificial intelligence.

A decade after premiering on Nickelodeon and two years out from their film debut, the titular group of canine first responders, led by a preteen boy called Ryder (voice of Finn Lee-Epp), returns for another round of derring-do and some fresh life lessons.

A blast furnace of blasphemy, “Deliver Us” (Magnet), also is an amalgam of gore and nudity. Co-director (with Cru Ennis) Lee Roy Kunz — who co-wrote the screenplay with Kane Kunz and also takes the film’s leading role — seems intent on giving us religiously themed horror with sexy elements and the power to shock.

After 146 days on strike, the Writers Guild of America — the labor union representing film, television, radio and online media writers — reached a tentative deal Sept. 24 with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, or AMPTP, the organization that negotiates on behalf of Hollywood’s largest production companies.

With “Expend4bles” (Lionsgate), director Scott Waugh extends a franchise that dates back to 2010 and that has always been fueled by mindless machismo. The latest blood-soaked entry in the series maintains that lunkheaded outlook.

People often use the phrase “drowning in grief” to describe an experience of profound loss. “Under the Waves” (Quantic Dream) makes that phrase come alive by placing an acutely bereaved character in the depths of the ocean.

In adapting Hernández’s memoir “Reaching for the Stars,” Abella traces his remarkable journey from child migrant farm worker to NASA engineer and candidate for a place on the space shuttle.

“A Haunting in Venice” (20th Century) is the third in a series of Agatha Christie adaptations, all featuring her famed sleuth Hercule Poirot, on which director and star Kenneth Branagh has collaborated with screenwriter Michael Green.

Catholics Mobilizing Network released a new minidocumentary Sept. 13 highlighting the story of Felix Rosado, a former prisoner who is co-founder and co-coordinator of Let’s Circle Up, a restorative justice project based at the state prison in Graterford, Pa.