XX

XX is an intriguing horror anthology film, directed completely by women, featuring four stories focusing on female characters facing horror both domestic and supernatural. The segments are framed by some beautifully grotesque stop motion animation created by Sophia Carrillo.

 A haunted Natalie Brown in The Box

The first segment, The Box is directed by Jovanka Vuckovic, former editor of my favorite horror magazine, Rue Morgue. In it, Susan (Natalie Brown from Channel Zero and The Strain) and her husband become concerned when their son begins starving himself to death after seeing something (we never find out what) in a gift box held by an old man on the subway. Eventually their daughter begins refusing to eat as well, and then Susan's husband begins starving himself too, leaving Susan alone and searching for answers as to what has happened to her family.

Melanie Lynskey is at her wit's end in The Birthday Party

The second segment, The Birthday Party, is a slick bit of domestic, darkly humorous horror, directed by Annie Clark (a.k.a. St. Vincent). It stars the always fabulous Melanie Lynskey as Mary, a neurotic woman who finds her husband dead of an apparent suicide on the morning of their socially awkward daughter's birthday. Mary's attempts to hide the body in an effort to avoid ruining her daughter's party end up failing in a hilariously spectacular manner. This was probably my favorite segment of the bunch, and I would love to see Clark make a feature length film.

Breeda Wool becomes a monster in Don't Fall

The third segment was Don't Fall, about a group of friends on their annual vacation together, which, this year, goes off the rails in a gruesome fashion. Its stars include Breeda Wool, whom I loved on the television series Unreal. This one was a lot of fun, but I would have loved to see it go on longer, with more fully fleshed out characters and a longer action sequence.

Christina Kirk has to face evil in Her Only Living Son

The last segment, Her Only Living Son, is the heart wrenching story of a mother (Christina Kirk) whose child is beginning to realize that he is the son of Satan. It shows the lengths a mother will go to to protect her child, even when she realizes that there can be no happy ending.


This is one of the most even horror anthologies I have watched in years. While some segments are better than others, none of them disappoint. I would love to see a sequel, as I believe there is a particular need for more spotlights on women directors in the horror industry, and a series of XX anthology movies could open a lot of doors for up and coming female horror filmmakers.