Club Benefits
- Rating: 3.5/5 Stars
- Verdict: Drawing on Irish folklore, director Damian McCarthy’s “Hokum” is a creepy story about a haunted hotel, and also an impeccably plotted mystery about a missing bartender. Adam Scott is perfect in the lead role as a prickly American author who confronts childhood secrets along with the supernatural terrors lurking at the rural inn.
- Where to watch: Opens in theaters May 1
It’s exciting to be able to chart the creative evolution of a filmmaker in real time, and that’s been my reaction to “Hokum” writer-director Damian McCarthy, who made his feature debut with 2020’s “Caveat” and has made substantial leaps with each subsequent film, while retaining his unique artistic sensibilities. “Hokum” has a bigger budget and a much more recognizable star than McCarthy’s other horror films, but what’s most impressive about it is the way that McCarthy has developed into an accomplished storyteller and visual stylist.
“Hokum” expands on the creepy, foreboding atmosphere that McCarthy captured in “Caveat” and 2024’s “Oddity,” while building a satisfying murder mystery with clever plot twists, as McCarthy also did in “Oddity.” It continues the low-key expansion of McCarthy’s own bespoke cinematic universe of cursed objects, a sort of one-man version of the “Conjuring” universe.
McCarthy creates a unique world of the supernatural, and “Hokum” is the most immersive trip there thus far.
Article continues below‘Hokum’ draws the audience into its spooky environment
Casting American star Adam Scott in the lead role gives the Irish McCarthy a chance to open up his corner of the horror landscape to a wider audience, without losing focus on the distinctive regional folklore that makes his movies stand out. Like the viewer, bestselling author Ohm Bauman (Scott) is an outsider at the rural Irish inn where his parents once celebrated their honeymoon. He’s also a bit of an entitled jerk, initially embodying stereotypical assumptions about ugly Americans.
Ohm remains a bit of a jerk for the rest of the movie, and it’s admirable that McCarthy doesn’t back down from this prickly characterization. But McCarthy also reveals details that explain why Ohm instinctively pushes people away, and why his books are so bleak and pessimistic. Horror movies about trauma have become a tiresome cliché, and “Hokum” successfully revitalizes some of those worn-out themes by giving Ohm a truly horrific childhood experience to address.
Part of his healing process involves traveling to this quaint but very obviously haunted hotel surrounded by a lush forest. Ohm wants to feel a connection to his late mother, and to scatter the ashes of both his parents at what may be the last place they were ever happy. His visit is immediately marked by unsettling encounters, though, including dead goats and an eccentric forest-dweller named Jerry (David Wilmot) who talks about communing with the spirits of the dead.
What’s most disturbing is the secrecy surrounding the hotel’s honeymoon suite, where Ohm’s parents once stayed. It’s been locked up for years, supposedly haunted by a witch, and the cantankerous owner insists that no one can ever go in there. It’s not hard to figure out that Ohm will end up in the honeymoon suite, and McCarthy creates an eerie sense of anticipation for the inevitable terror to come.
‘Hokum’ offers a grounded mystery and a mystical haunting
If “Hokum” were just a horror movie about Ohm entering the haunted suite and confronting the literal and metaphorical ghosts of his childhood trauma, it would still be evocative and scary, thanks to the methodical, suspenseful pacing, the uncanny costume and set design, and Scott’s intense yet enjoyably self-deprecating performance. There are plenty of terrifying moments as Ohm explores deeper into the hidden areas of the hotel, witnessing apparitions and potentially confronting the witch who is older than the structure itself.
The reason that Ohm is there in the first place, though, is because he’s functioning as an amateur detective, just like so many author characters in thrillers before him. After he abruptly leaves the hotel under unpleasant circumstances, he returns weeks later to discover that it’s shutting down for the season, and that bartender Fiona (Florence Ordesh), the only person with whom he forged a friendly connection, has gone missing.
Thanks to a tip from Jerry, Ohm believes that she may have been trapped in the honeymoon suite, and he’s determined to help this woman who helped him when he was at an emotional low point.
Verdict: ‘Hokum’ is one of 2026’s best horror movies so far
Anyone who’s seen “Oddity” will be familiar with the way that McCarthy doubles back on mysterious events in order to show what’s really happening, and “Hokum” features several well-crafted reveals that place characters and incidents in an entirely new light. While the supernatural elements remain inscrutable, the question of what happened to Fiona is answered with delightful precision, as tightly plotted as any good mystery novel.
Scott holds it all together with his trademark mix of sarcasm and vulnerability, making Ohm likable even as he treats people around him with disdain. He’s the perfect guide into McCarthy’s realm of Irish mysticism, where distorted visions of rabbits and automated striking clocks are horrifying and darkly funny.
Just as the front-desk bell from “Oddity” led into “Hokum,” there’s a wealth of potentially possessed items in “Hokum” that could open up more stories. I can’t wait to see what McCarthy does with the next one.
“Hokum” opens in theaters May 1
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