NEW YORK. Swedish producer Adam Anders has long been associated with such peppy musical fare as the Fox TV series “Glee” and the big-screen comedy “Rock of Ages.” As he makes his directorial debut with the lively song and dance-filled film “Journey to Bethlehem” (PG, Sony), that legacy is on full display.

Call it the jazz-hands Nativity story.

NEW YORK.  Emotional ambiguity pervades the dramatization “Killers of the Flower Moon” (R, Paramount/Apple TV+). Epic yet intimate, director and co-writer Martin Scorsese’s masterful recounting of real-life events in 1920s Oklahoma is too gritty for kids, but deeply rewarding for grown-ups and possibly acceptable for older teens.

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

NEW YORK.  More than 20 years ago, Greek Canadian actress and author Nia Vardalos penned the script for a screen adaptation of a one-woman play she had written and performed exploring the mores and foibles of the immigrant community in which she had been raised. The result was a sleeper box-office hit that was also well received by critics.

NEW YORK. In a timely move, the folks behind the slick, vibrant espionage thriller “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One” (PG-13, Paramount) have added an experimental Artificial Intelligence project run amok to their roster of villains. So if moviegoers weren’t afraid of AI before seeing the picture, they may well be afterward.