HOKUM (2026)

Genre: Horror/Thriller
Director:  Damian McCarthy
Cast: Adam Scott, Peter Coonan, David Wilmot, Florence Ordesh, Michael Patric, Will O'Connell, Brendan Conroy, Austin Amelio 
Runtime: 1 hr 48 mins
Rating: NC16 (Some Coarse Language and Drug References)
Released By: Shaw Organisation
Official Website: 

Opening Day: 21 May 2026

Synopsis: When novelist Ohm Bauman (Scott) retreats to a remote inn to scatter his parents' ashes, he is consumed by tales of a witch haunting the honeymoon suite. Disturbing visions and a shocking disappearance forces him to confront dark corners of his past.

Movie Review:

Adam Scott, best known for his comedic turn in Parks and Recreation and his acclaimed performance in the sci-fi series Severance, stars as Ohm Bauman, an author who travels to a remote and unsettling inn in rural Ireland. His purpose is to scatter his parents’ ashes at the very place where they spent their honeymoon.

Hokum is a slow-burn horror film, far removed from the kind of movie that delivers immediate scares. In fact, viewers may initially find themselves wondering where the horror is lurking. Gradually, references to witches and a permanently locked honeymoon suite begin to surface. Then strange events unfold: Bauman inexplicably attempts to hang himself, while hotel bartender Fiona (Florence Ordesh) mysteriously disappears after a Halloween party.

Bauman’s acquaintance, a free-spirited hippie named Jeffrey (David Wilmot), who lives in the nearby woods, quickly becomes the prime suspect in Fiona’s disappearance, at least according to Mel (Peter Coonan), the hotel’s caretaker. As the mystery deepens, the film leaves viewers questioning its true nature. Is this a straightforward horror tale, an investigative murder mystery, or a piece of Irish folklore brought to life?

Complicating matters is the fact that Bauman is far from a sympathetic protagonist. He is rude to the hotel staff, dismissive of his readers, and even scalds a bellhop’s hands. The troubled author is also harbouring a dark secret of his own, one that gradually comes to light as the story progresses.

Hokum is not an easy film to appreciate. Writer-director Damian McCarthy prefers restraint over exposition, keeping his supernatural elements frustratingly elusive at times. Nevertheless, there is no shortage of jump scares, booming sound design and atmospheric sequences shrouded in near-total darkness. The tension reaches its peak during the final act, when Bauman finds himself trapped in a claustrophobic basement accessible only through a dumbwaiter.

While Hokum is clearly a modestly budgeted production, McCarthy makes impressive use of his limited resources. Whether the horrors are psychological manifestations or reflections of guilt and fear, the film remains more grounded than the average supernatural thriller. Even the gore and gruesomeness are kept to a minimum, allowing atmosphere and suspense to take centre stage.

Equally noteworthy are the performances. Scott delivers a convincing dramatic turn, while Wilmot’s Jeffrey injects some much-needed humour into an otherwise gloomy and oppressive film. More puzzling, however, are the prologue and epilogue featuring a conquistador and a young child wandering through a desert, sequences supposedly drawn from Bauman’s unfinished novel. Their significance remains intriguingly ambiguous.

Movie Rating:

(A subtle and unsettling horror experience that rewards patient viewers who prefer atmosphere and psychological unease over conventional scares)

Review by Linus Tee