Hokum Movie Review: An atmospheric horror that checks you into Ireland’s most haunted hotel

Story: A novelist’s trip to Ireland to scatter the ashes of his dead parents, where they celebrated their honeymoon, turns into a haunted nightmare when he checks into the town’s most haunted hotel.Review: Imagine a cold winter town with barely any people and a hotel that reeks of mystery from every corner. Welcome to The Bilberry Woods Hotel in rural Ireland - a hotel where you know something’s not right the moment you enter. It’s barely occupied and run by a skeletal staff that includes the owner Cob’s son-in-law and manager Mal (Peter Coonan), Fiona (Florence Ordesh), the bartender, and bellboy Alby (Will O'Connell).Ohm (Adam Scott), who’s had a few novels to his credit, is recognised by the staff, who try to be friendly with him, but Ohm’s cold demeanour quickly puts them off. While scattering his parents’ ashes, Ohm bumps into a homeless Jerry (David Wilmot), who’s high as a kite on magic mushrooms. Just when Ohm thinks he can finally relax and unwind after completing the task that brought him to Ireland, the hotel’s mysterious past and eerie presence begin to haunt him. Curious yet suspicious, Ohm’s quest to uncover the truth leads him down a dark path into the hotel’s deeply unsettling secrets.Director and writer Damian Mc Carthy, who gave us films like Caveat and Oddity, goes back to basics with Hokum - a haunted tale rooted in folklore and punctuated by perfectly timed jump scares. Delivering handsomely on one of horror’s classic tropes - transporting its audience into a claustrophobic, dingy old hotel full of secrets and ghostly sightings - Hokum effectively feeds on the audience’s fear. While McCarthy’s story is a bit uneven and unfolds slowly, it offers a decent mix of real danger and psychological tension. The true hero of the film is clearly the hotel itself, à la The Shining, hauntingly brought to life on screen through Colm Hogan’s visceral cinematography, Ciara McKenna’s realistic set design, and Til Frohlich’s evocative production design.Adam Scott plays the uptight author whose desire to simply be left alone can easily be mistaken for snootiness. But he effortlessly sells the messed-up situation that Ohm finds himself trapped in - some of it purely by chance, much of it because of his own unwanted curiosity. The rest of the cast is just about passable. None of them has much room to perform, nor does the writing give them enough material to truly work with. Joseph Bishara’s background score complements the spooky proceedings on screen nicely.The jump scares land right on cue, and most horror lovers who enjoy the thrill of being suddenly jolted will find enough here to stay engaged. Hokum never attempts to redefine the horror genre, instead choosing to keep things simple and largely atmospheric. The experience feels more like walking through a haunted hotel attraction at an amusement park than being rewarded with a superb backstory or writing strong enough to justify all the spooks and scares.