Freeze Frame: “Cocaine Bear” (R), “Emily” (R), “We Have a Ghost” (PG-13), “Linoleum” (Not rated)

In 1985 a Georgia black bear consumed a duffel bag of cocaine that smugglers had dropped from an airplane. The grisly black comedy “Cocaine Bear” imagines what could have happened if that bear had gone on a drug-fueled killing spree. The carnage is played for laughs in Elizabeth Banks’ twisted opus that generates more than a few shameless laughs. “Cocaine Bear” could be a stoner’s guilty pleasure.

Ever wonder what life was like for Emily Bronte, the author of “Wuthering Heights?” In the romantic biographic drama “Emily,” Emma Mackey takes the title role in this highly fictionalized Victorian Era bodice-ripper that speculates about an affair that Bronte may have had with a clergyman in her rural English village. “Emily” is an atmospheric flight of fancy.

“We Have a Ghost” is a Netflix supernatural comedy that owes a lot to “Ghostbusters.” David Harbour plays a troubled spirit named Earnest who haunts the house of a financially struggling family led by Anthony Mackie. When they capture Earnest’s image on cellphone video, he becomes a social media sensation. The tone of this wacky movie is all over the place swinging from broad comedy to dark murder mystery. It’s lively and sometimes funny, but “We Have a Ghost” struggles to fill its two-hour-plus running time.

“Linoleum” is a sci-fi drama that the word “offbeat” was coined for. Jim Gaffigan plays the host of an unsuccessful kid’s science show, who decides to build his own spaceship. But strange events that defy normal timelines complicates those efforts. Rhea Seehorn and Tony Shalhoub are part of an agreeable supporting cast. Writer-director Colin West’s story is twist and more than a bit enigmatic. “Linoleum” may appeal to patient viewers who appreciate ambiguity.


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