#REVIEW: UNDERTONE

Review by Amanda Gilmore for Mr. Will Wong

Canadian Horror undertone discovers a new way to terrify.

Paranormal Podcast host Evy (Nina Kiri) has moved back home to care for her ailing Mother. To record the Podcast, she stays up until 3 am to be in the same time zone as her co-host, Justin (Adam DiMarco). The two get sent mysterious audio recordings of a pregnant couple’s paranormal encounter. With each tape, Evy discovers their story might parallel hers.

The Paranormal Horror genre has recently hit a wall, but Canadian Filmmaker Ian Tuason has reinvented it. He ditched the overdone found-footage trope audiences have grown hollow to for a fresh Podcast spin. Let’s be honest, Podcasts are all the rage right now, whether they cover the topics of paranormal entities or serial killers. There may be skeptics thinking, “how can a movie about a Podcast scare me?” Well, Tuason has proven that hearing something may be more terrifying than seeing it.

undertone is a film that succeeds because of the skill of its Cast and Crew. As the brilliant marketing campaign claims, this Film needs to be HEARD. The entire premise relies on the sound to terrify audiences. There are incorporations of children’s songs, their true meanings, and secret messages within. And of course, there’s the tapes themselves. Sound Designer David Gertsman and Composer Shanika Lewis-Waddell come together to deliver some of the most terrifying moments of the year. Their impactful work makes the terror something you feel. Therefore, making it last longer than a clichéd jump-scare.

A staggering achievement for undertone is its use of space. It’s entirely shot in one home (fun fact: it’s Tuason’s childhood family home). The majority of scenes take place in the dining room where the Podcast is taped, and in Evy’s Mother’s room, where she lies unresponsive. Cinematographer Graham Beasley uses every crevice of each room. In doing so, he creates a gradual build of tension and anxiety in each scene. His meticulous camerawork makes viewers feel something is going to happen at every tick of the clock.

The only speaking character we physically see is Evy. A daunting task for any Actor to carry all that weight. Kiri grabs our attention and never lets it go. Evy is the skeptic of the Podcast. No matter what, she’ll find a ‘logical’ reason for anything she’s heard. That is, until they stop recording. Kiri subtly shows Evy’s curiosity and fear at the parallels between her life and the tapes. Her formidable performance takes us on this spine-chilling journey.

undertone is an inventive Paranormal Horror that proves hearing something is just as terrifying as seeing it. It proves that Kiri is a star on- the-rise. Horror junkies may be divided on how it wraps up, but we can all agree that it stays true to its mission.

VVS Films release undertone in cinemas Friday, March 13, 2026.