All posts tagged: Undertone

Undertone ending explained: Who is Abyzou?

Undertone ending explained: Who is Abyzou?

Published by Daniella Wilson

If you’ve ever found that there is something a little scary about slowed-down renditions of nursery rhymes, then there’s a chance you’ll find new horror flick Undertone utterly terrifying. The feature debut of writer/director Ian Tuason has generated plenty of buzz since it’s festival premiere last year – although our own 2-star review is on the more negative end of the spectrum – and has just arrived in UK cinemas to frighten audiences on this side of the Atlantic. It stars The Handmaid’s Tale star Nina Kiri as a woman named Evy, who is caring for her comatose mother and – along with her co-host Justin (Adam Di Marco) – presents a horror podcast where they report on supernatural occurrences that are sent in to them by their listeners. At the start of the film, the pair begin to look into a series of unsettling voice recordings sent to them by a couple named Mike and Jessa, which include some pretty horrifying versions of London Bridge and Baa Baa Black Sheep. As the pair begin …

‘Undertone’ Director Ian Tuason on the Films, Filmmakers, and Creepypastas That Influenced His A24 Debut

‘Undertone’ Director Ian Tuason on the Films, Filmmakers, and Creepypastas That Influenced His A24 Debut

Published by Jenni Sidey

Tuason: I watch their stuff. I see a shot that really hits me, then I write it down, and then I have this list, and then I draw from that list when I’m writing because once an idea comes to my mind to shoot a certain scene, if I’m clear on the intention of that scene, I feel like it’s the same intention as this other scene like in a Danny Boyle film, I’ll use it then. And then I don’t know if anyone would catch it, but feel free to match my shots with someone else’s and I’ll admit it if you get it right. Everett Collection I was drawing quite a bit from Psycho, but mostly just [Hitchcock’s] philosophy… I pretty much just told you there was a bomb under the table, but there was never an explosion. GQ: Without giving too much away, what was the hardest—or the most fun—sequence in the movie to pull off? Tuason: Well, hands down, it starts when we have that ghost POV that floats from upstairs …

“Undertone” embodies horror’s crucial less-is-more lesson

“Undertone” embodies horror’s crucial less-is-more lesson

Published by Sam Flores

As far as horror films go, writer-director Ian Tuason’s debut feature “Undertone” has just about everything a genre connoisseur could ever want, all rolled into one. The movie is packed with religious iconography, scary voices, possessed objects, ancient demons with silly names, maniacal senior citizens, dubious mirrors, dark corners, creepy children’s songs, creepy children’s songs played backwards, and — most terrifying of all — podcasters. With the dust from the mid-2010s podcast boom finally settling, it was only a matter of time until the medium that has become an integral part of our daily lives got the star treatment. Podcasts have been supporting elements in horror for a minute, popping up in films like “Tusk” and 2018’s “Halloween” reboot, but they’ve yet to function as a true main character. Strange, considering the medium made true-crime and horror storytelling into a viable cottage industry. But whether you’re for or against that type of voyeuristic podcasting doesn’t matter here. Unlike other horror films, “Undertone” doesn’t make podcasters the butt of the joke or a predictable first-out kill. …