Synopsis
This all-female horror anthology features four dark tales from four fiercely talented women.
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Cast
- Natalie BrownSusan Jacobs (segment "The Box")
- Jonathan WattonRobert Jacobs (segment "The Box")
- Peter DaCunhaDanny Jacobs (segment "The Box")
- Peyton KennedyJenny Jacobs (segment "The Box")
- Ron LeaDr. Weller (segment "The Box")
- Michael DysonThe Man (segment "The Box")
- Melanie LynskeyMary (segment "The Birthday Party")
- Lindsay BurdgeMadeleine (segment "The Birthday Party")
- Sheila VandCarla (segment "The Birthday Party")
- Sanai VictoriaLucy (segment "The Birthday Party")
Recommendations
- 80
Los Angeles Times
It’s fascinating to observe how the feminine perspectives of XX create four powerfully compelling and original horror tales that operate within the genre while testing the boundaries of traditional storytelling and style. - 75
Slant Magazine
These shorts follow female protagonists as they wrestle with exclusion and implicit social standards that may or may not extend to their male counterparts. - 75
Chicago Tribune
The results offer a collective shiver (not a lot of shrieks here) for those in the mood for sprightly, short-form misfortune. - 70
The Verge
It’s at turns terrifying, hilarious, and uneven, but succeeds in doing its most important job: showing off a range of distinct directorial voices. - 70
Village Voice
I’d rather see these shorts included in a co-ed anthology, which would allow each director’s piece to gain resonance via proximity to works of shared themes. Still, if it takes segregating the sexes to climb up to gender parity, I can overlook a slightly mismatched directing combo. - 67
The A.V. Club
The four participating directors were all given complete creative freedom for their films, limited only by budget and running time. The fact that three of them have to do with motherhood is a coincidence, a thematic near-miss that’s emblematic of the film’s main disjointed weakness. - 60
The Hollywood Reporter
The package mixes existential creepiness with black comedy, demonic carnage and a Satan's spawn scenario, and while it's uneven — as these combos invariably are — genre enthusiasts looking for a female spin will want to check it out. - 60
Variety
Even at their least individually striking, each of these mismatched tasters stirs an appetite for a fuller, meatier meal from its maker — cooked as bloodily rare as possible, please.
