Monday, February 16, 2026
This Monday, February 16th, Sacrilegious Cinema: Menagerie of Madness harkens back to gothic horror in this debonair dyad. If you’re still reeling from Valentine’s Day and need to satiate a hunger for more dark romance, this pair will taint your system with twisted intimacy, exploring infatuation, sordid desires, old wounds, selfhood and the inevitable relationship between love and death- set against intricate backdrops and exquisite sights riddled in morbid mystique and dripping in sinful sensuality. 
At 8PM, we start our journey in New York where we meet the acquaintance of aspiring writer, Edith Cushing, only for adversity to strike whilst romance blossoms, catapulting our young protagonist overseas to the gloomy, spirit-infested Allerdale Hall, where the Sharpe siblings hide a secret unveiled solely by the horror of love.
Unearth what lurks in the shadows and behind hidden passageways in Guillermo del Toro’sCRIMSON PEAK (2015), drenched in death, despair, forbidden passions, and phantoms of the past- both in the tactile and metaphorical sense. Woven within the gothic imagery, there lies a dichotomy between the American modernity and Old World England, denoted by the stark contrast in color palettes. The impeccable wardrobes stitched by Kate Hawley (Frankenstein, 2025) further steep the narrative in symbolism, each garment evoking a deeper meaning behind the character’s apparel, including butterfly and moth motifs to showcase opposing metamorphoses corresponding to the visuals. Mia Wasikowska shines as leading lady, bringing an innocence to her hard-headed determination and resourcefulness in a coming of age role— complementing her foil, Lucille, played with icy precision by Jessica Chastain. The trio is rounded out by Tom Hiddleston’s performance as the charismatic baronet, Thomas Sharpe. Crimson Peak etches a portrait of trauma, presenting mechanisms of coping with haunting memories, and excavating the brutality equipped in the throes of love- where nothing truly stays buried.. for long. 
Then, at 10PM, we traverse 18th-century France to study the life of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, a man with an inexplicable olfactory ability leading him to become both a professional perfumer and serial killer in pursuit to curate the perfect fragrance. An adaptation of German author Patrick Süskind’s 1985 novel, PERFUME: THE STORY OF A MURDERER (2006) examines obsession, identity, isolation, and desire through the character of Grenouille and the accompanying societal reaction to his existence, climaxing in a dash of dramatic irony. Reinvigorating Romanticism, Perfume manifests the rebellion against the Age of Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution, churning out a tale mutually titillating and taboo in nature; in a world where the scent is the same as the spirit, we survey the self, dissecting the psyche of a serial killer to distinguish the tangible from the abstract in a lesson of possession- Grenouille represents the husk of humanity. Directed by Tom Tykwer and starring Harry Potter alumni Alan Rickman and (narration by) John Hurt, in addition to Peter Pan’s (2003) Rachel Hurd-Wood- and of course, our titular protagonist- portrayed flawlessly by Ben Whishaw. This historical horror thriller yields breathtaking cinematography and striking visuals, cultivating a grim albeit amorous atmosphere draped in decadence, Perfume remains among the most expensive German (as well as European) productions to grace the silver screen. 
Don your Del Toro best and flaunt your favorite fragrance and join us at Hot Wax Coffee Shop in Ybor City to experience the travesty of these liaisons. 
No cover charge and FREE POPCORN with purchase. (In addition to psychological insight accompanied by behind the scenes information and observations by your horror hostess).