Horror Movie Review: Hokum (2026)

For all its flaws, and they are notable, Hokum is a film that lingers thanks to its folk horror atmosphere, authentic look and feel, and some strong acting from a talented cast. I didn’t love it, mainly because the script needed to be a lot tighter, but I do remember it.

Written and directed by Damian McCarthy, the film stars Adam Scott. An actor I am quite a fan of, but an actor who doesn’t stray into horror much. Real ones remember his role early role as Jacques in 1996’s Hellraiser: Bloodline.

He plays Ohm Bauman, a troubled author who has little time for people (most would call him rude), and who has an air of the Stephen Kings about him. Whether that was intentional or not, we’re introduced to him as he arrives at a quaint and remote hotel in Ireland. One that is said to be haunted, although you’ll struggle to find old hotels in Ireland who don’t have a supernatural story or two to share.

He’s here to scatter the ashes of his mother, having seen a local redwood tree in a photo of his parents on their honeymoon in happier times. She died many years before in tragic circumstances causing his father to become a depressed alcoholic who took his frustration, anger, and grief out on Ohm.

These are demons that haunt the man and by returning here, he seems to want to exorcise them. Except they’re quite embedded in, and later that night, he attempts suicide. He is saved by hotel worker Fiona (Florence Ordesh), who had been kind to him earlier in the day. Wanting to thank her and having been released from the hospital, Ohm goes back to the hotel to discover she went missing the night of the Halloween party.

Police have no clues, everyone seems to have given up, and the hotel has been searched top to bottom, except the Honeymoon Suite. Which has been long locked up. There’s no reason to search it because it would be impossible for her to get up to it. Ohm is less than convinced though and decides to look himself. Discovering a supernatural threat that puts more than his life at risk, it wants his soul and to save it, he’s going to have to fight to survive.

I liked Hokum, but I was left feeling frustrated by it at times, particularly the story, which is quite basic when you look at closely. That’s not a problem, as I would rather a story be simple and good, then convoluted and bad, but I’m not sure the one Hokum tells is that good in the end. Oddly, the more it went on, the more I found myself detached from it. Part of the reason for that is that once Ohm gets inside the Honeymoon Suite, the film starts to throw more at the wall and not enough sticks.

On the one hand, the film combines real life horror with one man’s trauma and his attempt to get past what haunts him. But on the other, we have 1408 style psychological haunting and a literal witch. What might first seem to be open for interpretation ends up being quite the opposite as the film goes on. This is my big problem with it, why I felt like it loses focus, and why I wasn’t as engaged come the end.

I think this gets hidden by a measured and thoughtful performance from Scott, and a strong supporting cast that includes Peter Coonan, David Wilmot, and Florence Ordesh. As well as some brilliant cinematography, courtesy of Colm Hogan. He makes this film look amazing, adds so much charm to the location, and enhances the mystery, and horror, of it all. Which McCarthy uses to make the film scarier than it first seems. Interestingly, Hokum isn’t a slow burn horror, rather it jumps in and out of the truly frightening stuff, and that does make for some effective frights. Something for a more casual audience, maybe, but when coupled with the film’s strong atmosphere, it can be enjoyed by all.

I’m not as enamoured with the film as others, but I do recognise its effect on me. Months later, I can remember the look of hotel, the feel of the woods, the dread that surrounds the Honeymoon Suite, and so much more. That makes it a good film as far as I’m concerned.