Review #37 - Hokum (2026)

The Souls Of The Damned Want To Rip Your Ears Off.

Total Score: 13/23.

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T.W. Suicide.

Finally, I have seen Hokum (2026).

Honestly I’ve been quite excited to see this, having deeply enjoyed Caveat (2020). I was a little disappointed that Oddity (2024) wasn’t quite as good, but had high hopes all the same.

For me, this third film solidified McCarthy as someone who’s mastered the art of Freaking You Out. More on this later.

Hokum gets weird quick - and is not afraid to shit you up almost immediately. You know what you’re getting into before we even get to Ireland, and hear of the horror of the Cailleach. Our protagonist, Ohm Bauman, is an annoying prick - you cannot wait to see things hit the fan for this guy.

Long story short, there is a witch trapped in the honeymoon suite of an old Irish hotel. While this sounds like the core of the story, the more significant element of the plot is that a pregnant woman has been murdered. This is a far scarier reality than any supernatural terror. Ohm is a troubled man, and his attempt at suicide is only narrowly thwarted. The main person responsible for saving him? The pregnant woman, Fiona. By the time Ohm is conscious again, he finds that she has gone missing - on Halloween, no less. So, he follows up. He needs to thank her, and even if he is a complete dick, he’s not heartless. After talking to The Murder Suspect, a strange shroom-addled fellow named Jerry, the two embark on a mission to investigate the honeymoon suite. Apparently Fiona’s ghost directed Jerry up there.

This is, shockingly, true. Things ramp up fast after Ohm becomes locked in the suite, having discovered Fiona’s rigid corpse. A series of recordings reveal the terrible truth - that she was drugged and left to die for a colleague’s adultery. Also, there’s something in the basement (McCarthy’s favourite spooky trope). Also also, Ohm accidentally killed his own mother - which explains a lot about his demeanour. This last surprise is clunkily exposed, but it does the job.

Speaking of Ohm’s mother, it seems that she has been haunting him for years. Waiting, perhaps, for the chance to tell him he is forgiven, and, possibly, to save his life.

There are numerous scares from here on out, each expertly done. Shadows of figures following Ohm. Fiona’s corpse even disappears briefly. The Witch stalks Ohm through the suite, only put off by a chalk circle.

The basement is good and spooky. Any moment spent down there is tense, and I honestly wish we’d had more of it. But, less is more.

A standout moment for me is the scene in which Ohm tries to communicate with Jerry that he is trapped in the room. Jerry, for context, has been kidnapped and jumped out of a moving van while all this has been going on. He returns to his investigation only to be murdered just as he is able to get the key to Ohm. There is an extended scene bursting with tension as Ohm desperately tries to ring a little bell to notify his companion that he is trapped, and he VERY nearly fails. It is a fucking close call, again and again. I really think this might be one of the strongest bits of the film.

Anyway, as I say, Jerry gets a crossbow bolt in the noggin and dies. It’s the adulterer, Mal, a hotel employee. He sets fire to the hotel, but forgets the key in his attempt to escape. So begins the pursuit - Mal must follow Ohm into the basement.

This final sequence in the basement is surprisingly brief. Ohm hides within yet another chalk circle, just barely avoiding the witch. We get a very good look at her. Mal is too late to escape her clutches, and now the film evokes a nasty myth we heard in the opening twenty minutes - of how witches drag little boys along on chains, taking them deep into the Underworld, for the dead to rip and gnaw at their young, still-living flesh. Nasty. And apparently, true to life. The hungry dead feast on Mal offscreen. Their eyes are witchlights in the darkness.

Ohm has a moment now to mourn his mother properly, and commune with her. It is a satisfying moment of closure. He has healed, at least a little. Fiona too, has her healing moment, as the eyes of her corpse finally close, no longer staring desperately out, pleading to be avenged.

As Ohm enters the inferno of the hotel, finally leaving the suite, he passes out. His saving grace is, as I referenced earlier, his mother’s ghostly voice, who calls out for help.

In the film’s final scene we discover that Ohm has unknowingly ingested psilocybin. This opens us up to two possibilities, though we are directed towards one quite strongly; either the drug allowed Ohm a temporary Second Sight, or he was tripping off his nut for a few days. It seems most likely that all we saw was real, though. His visions of his mother before the shrooms might be a mind shattered by grief and guilt, but it seems likely that she truly was haunting him.

Anyway, I’ve bombed through this synopsis and left quite a lot out. I’m not trying to go mega in-depth here as I’m pretty late to the party seeing the damn thing! What I really want to get into is how I feel about McCarthy. So.

I watched his debut film, Caveat years ago, and thought it was fucking scary. I won’t go over my thoughts again in great detail cos you can just follow the link, but long story short, it blew me away. When Oddity came out I was exceedingly excited. However, I find it didn’t hit the same heights. It had that same characteristic strangeness, where every new element has you unsettled and confused, but not nearly as much of that pure fear factor. It was a step into bolder territory, in many ways, but it’s not a film I even reviewed after watching. Now, with Hokum, a pattern has emerged for me. McCarthy seems to go nuts for:

• A central mystery, or suspicious circumstances.

• The occult and disturbing artefacts.

• Visuals that are Strange. Think Lynch. Just stuff that makes your blood go cold, and your neck itch.

• Limited movement - people being trapped, manipulated or hunted.

• Things moving that should not move. Bonus points for dead people.

These are the building blocks for a fun time, undeniably. But I’m left with questions - is narrative strength being sacrificed on the pyre on getting real weird? Is this a clear-cut directorial style emerging, and am I sure I like it? I definitely like the cinematography and the scares. I like (most) of the ideas. But do I want to see another film like these three? Or are they pushing my personal boundary between bizarre and frustrating?

Overall though, I had a fun time. It is a fun horror flick. I’d certainly rewatch it!

I really really want to hear everyone’s thoughts. Seriously. Get commenting.

And, as ever, thank you for reading,

Until next time,

H.E.

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P.S. The set design was a ten out of ten.