Exploring Emotional Depth in Modern Horror: A Review of Hokum
By Published Apr 30, 2026, 9:00 AM EDT is a Lead Writer for Screen Rant's New Movie Team. He also writes or has written for Comicbook.com, CBR, That Hashtag Show, Just Watch, and TVBrittanyF. Brandon is an , co-writer of a Quarter-Finalist, a seasoned on-screen interviewer, and a MASSIVE nerd. You can reach him at bs.zachary@gmail.com Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap
Horror movies come in all shapes and sizes, each of them landing differently depending on their intended targets and approach. Take , for example; the Adam Scott-led horror film largely set in a remote Irish hotel and a dread-inducing atmosphere. Although there's little in the form of overt gore or monstrous threats, the film's blend of heavy subject material, unsettling imagery, and emotionally resonant performances delivers a genuinely frightening experience.
The thing that elevates it above many of its recent peers, however, is the way Hokum is able to be both an old-school scary movie and a surprisingly low-key story about grief, guilt, and the challenges of living with both. When anchored by one of the best performances of Adam Scott's career, the level of subtle craft and emotional storytelling at work here take the already solid scares and turn them into something special.
Hokum Takes Horror Staples And Finds Ways To Make Them Fresh
, a popular author dealing with a mix of writer's block and lingering trauma from his childhood. This prompts him to visit the remote Bilberry Woods Hotel in rural Ireland, seeking some peace – only to discover the hotel is haunted by a witch. Scott plays the abrasive Ohm with a prickly edge but a quiet touch of humanity, balancing the two poles of the character with surprising grace. Ohm is a character who is easy to dislike at first, but Scott never lets him slip into caricature or parody.
Scott does a lot of the heavy lifting in the film, but gets some key assists from a supporting cast that includes Peter Coonan, David Wilmore, and Florence Ordesh. All three find nuance in characters who could easily be stock roles, especially as the film's true nature reveals itself. The actual swerves in the plot all build naturally in some effective ways, especially as it plays with a specific style without ever losing sight of the underlying horror of the narrative.
The third feature-length horror film from writer/director Damian McCarthy, Hokum takes all the lessons of his previous movies and deploys them with a welcome level of restraint. There are jump scares and monster reveals, but McCarthy plays with pacing and expectation in some clever ways; there is a slow-burn quality that heightens the old genre standbys. This natural balance is also key to the emotional weight of the film, which gives the movie real staying power.
Hokum Is Horror With A Heart, And Non-Genre Fans Are Welcome
Hokum is very much a horror film, but there's enough going on underneath the surface that it'll appeal to non-horror fans as well. The script by McCarthy is emotionally resonant without feeling overwrought, benefiting from very grounded stakes that don't distract from the scares. The film never stops being creepy, but it knows just when to slow things down or ratchet them up. Similarly, it knows when to be sarcastic, grim, and even surprisingly emotional.
Hokum works so well because of McCarthy's script and Scott's acting, with the actor finding the right balance of silence, snark, and sincerity to deliver a time great horror lead role.
There are a few concrete problems with Hokum. As well-balanced as the movie is, there's nothing necessarily groundbreaking here – the scares work so well because they have the tense atmosphere and haunting visuals to bolster them, but they're still pulled from a tried and true playbook of horrors. Hokum doesn't reinvent the wheel like some horror movies do, and amid the recent or reality-altering of Exit 8, its more limited ambitions stand out.
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That's not necessarily a complaint, however. Hokum colors within the lines, but does such a good job of it that it's nearly impossible to fault McCarthy for his approach. The emotional rawness of the film makes the central narrative compelling, even as the brewing mythology and genuinely great twists keep escalating the tension to its breaking point. Hokum is a refinement of what came before, not a rehash: a terrifically composed throwback that knows when to play things grounded and when to embrace the horror for its full potential.
Hokum premiered at SXSW on March 14 and releases in theaters wide on May 1.
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