In his directorial feature-length debut, writer-director Ian Tuason helms this psychological supernatural horror film about popular paranormal podcast host Evy (Nina Kiri), who is haunted by recordings anonymously send to her and her podcast partner, Justin (Adam DiMarco). (126 min.)
UNDERTONE
What’s it rated? R
What’s it worth, Anna? Don’t bother
What’s it worth, Glen? Matinee
Where’s it showing? Colony, Downtown Centre, Park, Stadium 10
Glen Look out, Ringu (1995), there’s a new haunted recording in town, and this one is strictly sound based. Throw in a little The Blair Witch Project (1999) vibe, some Paranormal Activity (2007), and you’ve got the recipe for a derivative-low budget horror flick that’s long on atmosphere but short on substance. It all takes place in Evy’s childhood home, where she’s watching over Mama (Michèle Duquet), who’s in non-responsive in hospice care. Evy and Mama are the only two characters who appear on-screen. Everyone else—podcaster Justin, the two characters in the mysterious recordings (Keana Lyn Bastidas as Jessa and Jeff Young as Mike), and a few other characters on phone calls—are disembodied voices. As a debut, it has its merits, and we saw it in a theater with Dolby Atmos, which is amazing surround sound, but I doubt this film will translate to home viewing. The atmosphere won’t come through, and the handful of jump scares won’t be enough.
Anna My exact words at the conclusion of this film were, “I’m so mad right now. This movie could have been an email.” Even with some sleep in between and a true crime docuseries to distract me since, I still feel the swell of dissatisfaction just thinking about spending more than an hour and a half of my time watching this. I should be the prime audience—I love spooky. I have scary-, mysterious-, or curiosity-driven podcasts playing through my earbuds at least six hours a day. I love a weird old house filled with an alarming collection of Catholic paraphernalia. If you can’t hook this fish with this film, good luck out there in the open water. What tried to play as clever by only having Evy and her mom appear on-screen seemed to me like an easy way out of paying people for on-screen time. This film was so obnoxiously boring.
Glen Oh boy. I hope writer-director Tuason doesn’t read your review. His feelers will be hurt. I think some audiences will enjoy the film. It creeped me out a little bit, and sound-wise, it was disturbing. I already hate the shrill, urgent sound of a whistling teakettle, and that sound effect was not used sparingly. I kept thinking, “Can’t you hear that? Run your ass downstairs and turn it off!” I don’t listen to podcasts much except when forced to on long drives with my favorite Murderino, but Evy and Justin’s podcast, titled The Undertone, seemed boring compared to the stuff you’ve forced me to listen to. If you’re horror obsessed, hit a matinee, but if I had missed this one, I wouldn’t be sad.
Anna The two hosts are also very willy-nilly about their recording time—Oh, Evy is feeling weird, let’s pick up in a few days … and then again … but they release every Friday? And host a weekly live podcast on Mondays? OK, sure. Also, they somehow pack eight of the 10 recordings into one episode and leave just two for the finale? Who is planning this? This is chaotic mess at best, and I can’t stand it. There are motherhood ties and a vague yet easily forgotten reference to Evy having a past drinking problem. She’s got a boyfriend who we hear from exactly once, and weird guilt around her lack of prayer time. This nothing burger of a film is just getting me riled up again. I’m not here to tell anyone how to live their life, but I suggest a jaunty walk or spending some time with one of those 3D image books that were so popular in the ’90s—both will prove much more stimulating than Undertone. ∆
Arts Editor Glen Starkey and freelancer Anna Starkey write Split Screen. Comment at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Spring Arts Annual 2026.