undertone

undertone serves up a bloodcurdling viewing experience thanks to exceptional sound design and an excellent executed idea from writer and director Ian Tuason, that will no doubt have viewers' hearts pounding as they are left shell shocked by the nightmare that unfolds on screen.

Over the decades, the Canadian film industry has delivered some unforgettable horror films that have terrorized viewers, from classics like Black Christmas, the works of David Cronenberg, and last year’s unforgettable Dream Eater. While the stories told within this genre squarely fall into specific predefined narrative groupings, the horror genre has always explored emerging areas of our everyday life, finding new circumstances in which it can scare audiences to death. From the emergence of social horror films from filmmakers like Jordan Peele that reflect on an unsettling truth of our world to develop true terror, or films that play with new technology to show a setting in which audiences can be scared, such as the use of found footage shaky camera footage in The Blair Witch Project or the use of video conferencing in Unfriended, there’s always a new way to scare viewers. And Canadian writer and director Ian Tuason, in his feature film debut, continues this pioneering spirit and delivers a chilling horror film set in the world of podcasting. Slowly building tension and terror over the course of the film, Tuason unleashes a horrifying sound design that creates an immersive and nerve wracking experience for viewers in undertone, delivering not only a brilliant independent Canadian horror film, but one of the most disturbing horror films in recent years that is only for the bravest of viewers.

Sometimes simplicity is your best friend in writing a story, especially within the horror genre. Over-explaining plot ideas can remove the mystical out of the scary entities that have tortured us on screen, reducing them to something that can be explained away, and Tuason knows this. He keeps the premise of undertone simple, with podcasters Evy and Justin listening to ten mysterious voice recordings of a young couple experiencing something unnatural that have been sent to them anonymously for investigative purposes, with them listening to the recordings over a number of nights. As they start listening to the recordings, Evy begins to notice strange occurrences in the home of her mother, who she is caring for as she dies, and Tuason gradually ramps up the terror. From a shadow in the background that should not be there to her mother miraculously walking around the house behind Evy’s back despite being bedridden and non-responsive, Tuason executes familiar jump scares but with such an expert direction that combined with the chilling silence of the film, is guaranteed to send chills down viewers’ spines.

As the recordings progress and Evy learns more about what actually happened to this couple, the scares intensify around her mother’s house. The audience is given small nuggets of information about what happened to this couple on the recordings, that paired with some of the specifics of Evy’s personal story over the course of the film, setting up the fighting urge to explain everything that is happening. This could have been done in a research montage as Evy searches for answers about this couple on the internet that a filmmaker wanting to cater to the audiences’ desire for answers, but Tuason stays true to the skeptic within Evy who does not believe in demonic forces and continues following her as she chalks up the strange occurrence she is experiencing to sleep deprivation and emotional exhaustion caring for her dying mother. The audience is very much aware this is not the case, with the evil force closing in on Evy becoming more profound, harsh and physical in its appearances, which at this point should have the audience breathing uneasily. It all comes together in a show-stopping final act where Tuason unleashes everything he has narratively and directorial as the tenth and final recording plays, conjuring up something truly wicked that will have audiences screaming and jumping out of their seats in one of the most shocking and heart pounding conclusions to a horror film in recent memory. It is nothing short of a brilliant feature debut from Tuason, which should he continue making films within the horror genre, will no doubt be terrifying audiences for years to come.

Being set in a single location, undertone only features two actors on screen, and with Evy’s mom being largely unresponsive for the majority of the film, the film rests firmly on the shoulders of Nina Kiri as Evy. Kiri proves herself more than up for the challenge, developing a pragmatic skepticism to Evy that looks for the plausible explanation behind the voice recordings, not believing that there could be something truly evil at play. With a confidence despite bringing some moments of paranoia as feels some unnatural things occurring in her mother’s house over the nights of listening to the recordings, Kiri enters full scream queen mode by the film’s final act and captures the scared to death response of Evy to what unfolds, ensuring that the audience is just as panicked as she is at every turn during that show-stopping sequence. Limited to a vocal performance only, and one that was re-recorded after the film was initially shot, Adam DiMarco is a great partner to Kiri, bringing a care for his character’s friend as she goes through an incredibly emotionally taxing time and a true wonder and belief in the supernatural… helping to build the audience’s panic as his character reacts alongside the audience to the recordings that Evy is trying to find a logical explanation behind. And while she does not have much to do, Michèle Duquet dials up the terror as Mama as she quietly walks around the house in the most concerning way imaginable.

From the second Evy puts on her noise cancelling headphones to begin her podcast recording sessions, an unnatural quietness ensnares the audience. It is in this silence that sound designer David Gertsman and sound mixer Dane Kelly unleash an audible terror as each sound from the audio recordings that Evy and Justin listen to on their podcast hits the audience like a freight train. Every scream of terror, ruffling sound and bang explodes across the theatrical sound system with a sharp clarity, only heightened due to the surrounding narrative silence, building a tension within viewers that will have them on the edge of their seat and holding their breath in absolute fear.

With this chilling silence, the camera work act plays an important role as to teasing what is happening in the house as Evy is recording her podcast. Graham Beasley’s cinematography is smart and effective, slowly moving the focus off of Evy as she is recording her podcast and taking the audience through her mother’s house, focusing on spots shrouded in darkness and shadow teasing an evil just out of sight. Beasley holds the camera on these spots for an unnatural amount of time before moving it back to Evy, regardless of whether there is a jump scare waiting in the darkness or not, compounding on the terror of the sound design to create a truly unnerving experience. By the time the film reaches its final act, with the sound design and cinematography firing on all cylinders, even the most season horror aficionado will be jumping out of their seat and watching the remainder of undertone from between their fingers as Tuason unleashes his masterful vision that will leave audiences shell shocked by the unholy and mortifying event they just experienced.

Bearing every hallmark of an A24 horror film, and executed with a technical brilliance and relentless intent of mortifying audiences and leaving them on the verge of a heart attack during the film’s concluding sequence, there is no question that Ian Tuason has crafted an unforgettable film that will haunt viewers for days after seeing it. Taking a simple premise and without showing much visually, Ian Tuason creates a soundscape of absolute terror that with his effective direction and execution of his idea, creates one of the defining horror films of the decade. Joining the ranks of the all time best Canadian horror films, undertone is a nightmare come to life thanks to exceptional sound work that guarantees every unsettling moment lands with a clarity and force that will have audiences entering a full blown terror induced breakdown by the film’s unforgettable final act that will haunt their sleeps for days to come!