Hokum offers a masterclass in suspense and dread

Adam Scott as Ohm Bauman in Hokum - Courtesy of NEON

With three films to his name so far, Irish writer/director Damian McCarthy has proven that he's one of the best horror movie directors in the game. His latest release, Hokum, features a creepy hotel atmosphere, a brooding tone, and some solid jump scares. And like Caveat and Oddity, there's some damn scary bunnies, too.

Hokum stars Adam Scott as Ohm Bauman, a successful horror novelist who writes with the lights off and is haunted by the tragic death of his mother, who died by gunfire. The full extent of her death is revealed later in the movie, though it won't be spoiled here. Throughout the film, Ohm is tormented by ghostly images of his mother in a yellow dress with a trail of blood dripping down the side of her face. It's a disquieting, effective image that shows the extent of Ohm's trauma that he tries to bury by throwing himself into his writing.

However, after seeing his mother's ghost at the beginning of the film, he unlocks a box and goes through his parents' memories, including a postcard from Ireland, where they spent their honeymoon. Ohm keeps his parents' ashes at his home, but decides to spread them in Ireland, where they seemed happiest. Instead of doing that, Ohm should have just stayed home and kept the ashes in the urn because his trip abroad turns into a Gothic nightmare.

Ohm checks in at a rural hotel. Everything about it seems off. For instance, upon arrival, he hears the owner tell two children about a witch who kidnaps visitors. Well, it turns out that the witch may or may not be staying in the hotel's basement, accessible only through the locked honeymoon suite, which is allegedly haunted. No one goes in there. From the get-go, McCarthy establishes a lot of intrigue about the hotel, be it through its weird workers, the lore about the witch, or the common urban legend about a haunted honeymoon suite. It's all an intriguing set-up, especially coupled with the frequent dim lightening. Initially, it seems like the hotel's only illumination comes from small, candle-lit pumpkins. Ohm checks in on Halloween.

Scott is mostly known for his performance as the lead in the hit show Severance. In McCarthy's film, however, there's little to like about Scott's character. He's cantankerous and unappreciative. For instance, a bellhop, Alby (Will O'Connell), is a big fan of the author's work and approaches him at the bar. Alby tells Ohm that he, too, is a writer, but Ohm dismisses that and says that he's not a writer, he's a bellhop. Ouch. He even burns Alby's hand! That said, it's rather fun to see Scott play a character so drastically different than Severance's Mark Scout. Let's just say that Scott plays a jerk really well.

The real scares ramp up when a bartender named Fiona (Florence Ordesh) goes missing. For whatever reason, Ohm took a liking to her, even though he's a prick to everyone else he meets. Eventually, Ohm befriends a recluse named Jerry (David Wilmot), who lives in the woods, may or may not have murdered his wife, and certainly believes there's spirits in the hotel. The film's second half is pure nightmare fuel, as Ohm gets trapped in the honeymoon suite and hears the witch's chains clank in the basement below.

The film does employ jump scares, but not to the level of say, a Conjuring movie. They're used effectively and maintain a constant sense of dread and the feeling that Ohm isn't alone in that honeymoon suite. Additionally, McCarthy keeps the Gothic tone of his previous films to create a spooky atmosphere throughout Hokum. Further, the movie also plays out as a murder mystery because of Fiona's tragic narrative and Ohm's determination to solve the crime. The eventual details and reveal of her body are grisly and harrowing. McCarthy has a way of zooming in on uncanny images throughout this work. This was true of the bunny wind-up toy in Caveat, the wooden mannequin in Oddity, and a dead body in a bunny costume in Hokum. He lingers on these images until they stick in the audience's brain. He also has a knack for repeating a few images in his film, creating a common thread. Again, what does he have against rabbits? There's a sequence involving a children's host dressed up as a rabbit that's terrifying.

Hokum's only real flaw is its ending, which feels a little too rushed and a little too convenient. I also disliked the overly clever nod and wink to the film's title and its meaning. Additionally, the witch deserved much more of a storyline. We know little to nothing about her. She's an urban legend without much depth or shade, even if she's frightening as hell. Overall, though, Hokum is another solid entry in McCarthy's exciting filmography. It has solid jump scares, a hair-raising atmosphere, and a compelling lead performance by Scott, even when he's being a jerk. Hokum is a slow-burn spookfest.

Hokum is now playing in theaters.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qU_i5e48KzQ