XX

XX (2017) is a four-part horror anthology you can watch online on iFILM. Its tagline says it plain: four deadly tales by four killer women. Every segment is written and directed by a different female filmmaker.

A boy on the subway peeks inside a stranger's gift box and comes home wrong — he stops eating, turns cold, hides something his mother can't reach. Elsewhere a doll with jointed limbs starts moving on its own and unravels a household. Another chapter trails friends stalked by a thing in the dark; the last twists a mother's protectiveness into something far stranger. Natalie Brown, Melanie Lynskey and Sheila Vand lead the casts, with stop-motion puppetry stitching the stories together.

Directors Jovanka Vuckovic, St. Vincent, Roxanne Benjamin and Karyn Kusama trade jump scares for dread that creeps in from the edges. Best for fans of short-form horror who want mood over gore. Stream XX (2017) online on iFILM.