By Ella Saxton, Second Year, History and French
Following the success of Caveat (2020) and Oddity (2024), Irish writer-director Damien McCarthy adds another one-word chiller to his catalogue with Hokum. Far from perfect, Hokum is nevertheless an effective, if shallow, horror film that is packed with classic tropes from jump-scares to haunted elevators to creepy old women but held back by its cheap thrills and excessive melodrama.
Star of Severance (2022-) Adam Scott plays protagonist, Ohm Bauman, a classic ‘asshole-who-is-secretly-not-a-complete-asshole’. Bauman is a successful but disillusioned writer, who channels his traumas and frustrations into his books. Haunted (literally) by memories of his long-deceased parents, he travels to a remote hotel in Ireland where they stayed many years previously, so he can scatter their ashes and find some closure. Upon arrival, he is warned by staff about a fabled witch supposedly imprisoned in the mysterious (and permanently locked) Honeymoon Suite. Initially cynical, Bauman’s disbelief is shaken when a staff member goes missing, and someone – or something – begins ringing from the Honeymoon Suite…
Right off the bat, what is certain is that the Irish tourism board will not be thanking McCarthy for this film; the deceptively cosy hotel where Bauman stays is set in the middle of an eerie forest and managed by mostly strange Irishmen who range from the openly hostile to the downright batty. The Shamrock pride does not stop there; caravan-dwelling Sharman/hobo Jerry (David Wilmot) swigs Poitín from milk bottles; perma-smiling desk clerk, Mal (Peter Coonan), invites Bauman for ‘a bit of craic’ at the hotel; Mal’s elderly father-in-law, Cob (Brendan Conroy), regales children with sinister folklore about cock-ripping witches. The only tie to normality in this place is charming bartender, Fiona (Florence Ordesh), who befriends Ohm. Frankly, the most surprising element of Hokum is that at no point does the American Bauman try to claim to the staff that his ancestors were also Irish.
As a character, Bauman is incredibly dislikeable, yet perhaps Scott’s effortless charisma, and the drip-fed hints of the character’s tragic past, mean the audience cannot help but root for him as he elects to investigate the disappearance. However, ultimately, the film is not about solving a Scooby Doo-style mystery; instead, it transforms into a poignant character study that explores Ohm’s struggles with grief, guilt, and finding the will to live. They are three heavy themes, and McCarthy handles them with genuine care, yet they feel (oddly) disconnected from the cock-ripping, chalk circle-phobic witch stalking Ohm. On the flipside, some excellent set-pieces, including one involving a dumbwaiter and an intricate clock, are highlights of the film, and demonstrate McCarthy’s flair for practical effects.
Where Hokum falters is from McCarthy’s reluctance – unlike protagonist Bauman - to dig deeper and darker, hindering the film’s ability to truly scare, rather than merely shock. The established villain – a witch who was supposedly trapped in the fated Honeymoon Suite by Cob (important backstory that is inexplicably left unexplored) – is shunned in favour of a much more human – and weaker – threat. Meanwhile, red herrings of slaughtered goats, the wails of a ghostly bride, and apparitions of a terrifying children’s TV presenter, are all used for cheap scares, rather than being woven effectively into the fabric of the plot. As the film nears a dramatic climax, it abstains from answering any questions about the supernatural side of things to instead focus on Bauman’s struggle, leaving the viewer, if not unsatisfied, then distinctly let down. And while horror films often work best when much is left to the audience’s own horrified imaginings, too much ambiguity can feel, at best, like wasted potential, at worst, lazy writing.
Charles Hubbard
Weighed down by its muddled plot and empty threats, though strengthened by Adam Scott’s affecting performance, Hokum is still a decent chiller with plenty to make the hairs on your neck stand up.
Featured Image: IMDb / Hokum | Illustration by Epigram / Sophia Izwan
What did you think of Hokum?
