April 1, 2026
Auteur Almanac: April
Month 4 of Auteur Almanac: A Curation of Atmospheric, Alluring Assemblage Art
Welcome to Auteur Almanac, a new monthly series in which I will explore a unique dark theme curated through a gothic lens. Each installment will serve as a guide to the season, featuring these four categories:
- Visual Vault: A Moodboard
- The Midnight Marquee: A Movie Watchlist
- Ambient Accords: Fragrance Notes
- The Grim Advent: Curated Dates
With April hosting the highest concentration of major Abrahamic holidays, I decided it was the perfect time to explore the divine and deranged: all things that are a study in ‘high-art blasphemy.”
Visual Vault
The Midnight Marquee
The Exorcist (1973) - dir. William Friedkin
Synopsis: When a mysterious entity possesses a young girl, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.
Thoughts: I can’t start this list without beginning with the foundation. For me, this isn’t just a movie about a demon. It is a clinical, bone-chilling study of how faith crumbles under the weight of something truly ancient and foul. It is the ultimate blueprint for every movie on the midnight marquee.
Abby (1974) - dir. William Girdler
Synopsis: When a minister’s wife becomes possessed by Eshu, the Nigerian god of sexuality, an exorcist is called in to drive the evil spirit away.
Thoughts: You can absolutely tell this rode on the Exorcist release wave but unfortunately I found out that Warner Bros pulled this movie from distribution after successfully suing its producers for copyright infringement. This made it difficult to find for decades which I think largely contributes to it not having a cult fan base when it absolutely deserves it. To anyone that loves camp and blaxploitation: definitely watch this it’s an easy watch in the best way possible.
The First Omen (2024) - dir. Arkasha Stevenson
Synopsis: When a young American woman is sent to Rome to begin a life of service to the church, she encounters a darkness that causes her to question her own faith and uncovers a terrifying conspiracy that hopes to bring about the birth of evil incarnate.
Thoughts: A 2024 prequel sounded risky to me at first, but this movie is. master class in modern body horror. The cinematography feels grounded in the 70s and is deeply unsettling with its use of grainy, high-contrast visuals. It is a visceral (and worth-watching) reminder that some legacies are written in blood.
Rosemary’s Baby (1968) - dir. Roman Polanski
Synopsis: A young couple, Rosemary and Guy, moves into an infamous New York apartment building, known by frightening legends and mysterious events, with the purpose of starting a family.
Thoughts: Mia Farrow as Rosemary Woodhouse gives the performance of a LIFETIME. I thought because this movie was over 2 hours long and from the 60s I wasn’t going to be interested the entire time, but wow, did I underestimate it. I absolutely hate Roman Polanski and after reading about some of the things he made Mia Farrow do for this, the hate I already had for him (which was already massive), only grew. Genuinely though, I think we need to classify this as a body horror because between the casualness of marital (“it was fun in a necrophiliac way”??) rape, the psychological and gaslighting tension, the loss of bodily autonomy, and the subversion of trust was all way too much. This can cause nightmares of violation on every possible level. Nonetheless, I need that ending to be better. Everyone should’ve died for what they were complicit in doing.
The Devils (1971) - dir. Ken Russell
Synopsis: Father Urbain Grandier’s unorthodox views of sex and religion make him a polarizing figure in 17th-century France. His outspokenness has amassed a passionate following of nuns and a respected reputation for protecting the city of Loudon from corruption. Grandier’s influence is then undermined following a sexually repressed nun’s accusation of witchcraft.
Thoughts: Aesthetically beautiful with religious themes like sexual repression and hysteria which had it banned and censored for decades for being too honest. The massive clinical, white-tiled walls make every drop of red wine or blood loud and theatrical. It’s high-art, high-chaos, and one that I find essential in all of its religious avant-garde glory.
Alucarda (1977) - dir. Juan López Moctezuma
Synopsis: A young girl’s arrival at a convent after the death of her parents marks the beginning of a series of events that unleash an evil presence on the girl and her mysterious new friend, an enigmatic figure known as Alucarda. Demonic possession, Satan worship, and vampirism follows.
Thoughts: I love all adaptations of Carmilla but this one is at the top of my list of what I’d recommend. What’s not to love when a movie is about Mexican lesbians, nuns, vampires, blood lust, an evil naked forest cult, sacrilegious iconography, demonic possession, the hypocrisy of the catholic church, and themes of religious fanaticism and sexual repression? There are stunning blasphemous imagery and visuals that only proves to me why this is a cult classic of the nunsploitation subgenre.
Ambient Accords
The Grim Advent
If your idea of a spring devotion involves the sharp scent of spilled wine and the steady, echoing pulse of a hallowed nightmare, these are the days to mark on your calendar. Hopefully, the flicker of a candle can bring some warmth before spring comes in full effect.
Monthly Celebrations
National Humor MonthNational Card and Letter Writing MonthDaily Celebrations
1: April Fool’s Day1: International Fun at Work Day3: Don’t Go To Work Unless It’s Fun Day3: World Party Day4: World Rat Day5: Easter6: Plan Your Epitaph Day7: Caramel Popcorn Day10: National Siblings Day13: International Plant Appreciation Day14: Look Up At The Sky Day15: World Art Day17: Bat Appreciation Day18: Record Store Day19: National Hanging Out Day22: Earth Day 23: Lover’s Day23: Take A Chance Day24: Because I Can Day