HALLOWEEN KILLS “Evil dies tonight,” Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) promises in the trailer. But given that this is a sequel to a 2018 sequel that recycled the title of John Carpenter’s 1978 original, notwithstanding the existence of Rob Zombie’s 2007 remake (which was also called “Halloween,” and which had its own sequel), and given that this series had already been rebooted 20 years earlier with “Halloween H20,” following five previous sequels — well, the odds of Michael Myers dying “tonight” do not seem high. But count on him getting another whack at Strode, her daughter (Judy Greer) and her granddaughter (Andi Matichak). David Gordon Green, who directed the 2018 movie, returns. (Oct. 15 in theaters)
HARD LUCK LOVE SONG A guitarist-singer (Michael Dorman) reconnects with an ex (Sophia Bush) in a film based on a ballad by the musician Todd Snider. RZA co-stars. (Oct. 15 in theaters)
INTRODUCING, SELMA BLAIR The “Cruel Intentions” actress undergoes treatment for multiple sclerosis in a documentary that trails her for a year. Rachel Fleit directed. (Oct. 15 in theaters, Oct. 21 on Discovery+)
THE LAST DUEL The first of two Ridley Scott pictures this season is based on a true story from the Hundred Years’ War (and a book by Eric Jager). Matt Damon plays a knight whose wife (Jodie Comer) accuses a squire (Adam Driver) of rape — an accusation ultimately settled by duel. It’s not the sort of material you would expect to reunite the screenwriters of “Good Will Hunting,” but Damon and Ben Affleck, along with Nicole Holofcener, are credited with the adaptation. (Oct. 15 in theaters)
LUZZU Shown at Sundance and New Directors/New Films, this Maltese feature from Alex Camilleri is billed as a film in the neorealist tradition. It concerns a fisherman (played by an actual fisherman, Jesmark Scicluna) caught between poverty if he continues to fish and a shady operation that is destroying the local industry. (Oct. 15 in theaters)
NEEDLE IN A TIMESTACK John Ridley, who won an Oscar for the screenplay of “12 Years a Slave,” directed this science-fiction story. Orlando Bloom’s character toys with time in an effort to separate his ex-wife (Cynthia Erivo) from her current husband (Leslie Odom Jr.). (Oct. 15 in theaters and on demand)