Writing is scary, isn’t it? We try to shape thoughts and ideas into something coherent, something that can communicate feeling. But where do those thoughts come from? “Write what you know,” is often the advice, even if it proves harder than it sounds.
In Hokum, that question sits at the centre of the story. A writer contends with his past mistakes while attempting to find closure after the death of his parents, taking their remains to the place he believes they were last happiest together. It is also tied to his work, as he struggles to complete the final instalment of a successful trilogy that has come to define his career.
The film is a Gothic supernatural horror directed by Damian McCarthy, which premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival before opening in cinemas across the region. It is an Irish-UAE co-production between Image Nation Abu Dhabi, Tailored Films, Spooky Pictures and Cweature Features. Filming took place primarily in County Cork, Ireland, with additional scenes shot in the Remah Desert in Al Ain.
Adam Scott stars as Ohm Bauman, an American novelist who travels to an Irish coastal hotel connected to his parents’ past following their death. What begins as a personal journey becomes increasingly uncertain as he is drawn into a mystery surrounding a sealed room and a presence tied to the building’s history. The cast also includes Peter Coonan, David Wilmot, Florence Ordesh, Will O’Connell, Brendan Conroy and Austin Amelio.
Within the hotel and its surrounding landscape, the film moves between psychological mystery and supernatural horror. As Ohm spends more time there, he begins to experience visions linked to both the building’s past and his own, while the disappearance of a staff member draws him further into its hidden spaces. The setting places the film within a long tradition of hotel-based horror, most famously seen in The Shining, though Hokum narrows its focus.
Much of its tension centres on a single space, the sealed honeymoon suite, which is kept locked amid rumours of a witch tied to the room. That sense of restriction gives the film a clear focal point, with curiosity around the suite driving the narrative forward.
Irish folk horror has become more visible in recent years, with films such as All You Need Is Death and Let the Wrong One In, as well as McCarthy’s earlier work Oddity. The country’s landscapes and folklore lend themselves naturally to the genre, with a sense of history that informs both setting and character.
Ohm is not an immediately sympathetic figure. He keeps his distance from those around him, often coming across as guarded or abrasive. As the film progresses, however, more detail emerges about the circumstances that brought him to the hotel, reframing his behaviour and presenting him as someone shaped by past mistakes and attempting, in some form, to make amends.
There are moments of conventional tension throughout, including jump scares and sustained unease, but the film builds towards a more considered resolution. While not as assured as Oddity, it maintains a steady pace and does not overstay its welcome, allowing both the central mystery and Ohm’s personal journey to come into focus. Even then, its final moments leave enough ambiguity to raise questions about what, exactly, has taken place.
The film also continues the involvement of Image Nation Abu Dhabi in international horror production. Following projects such as Late Night with the Devil and Hoba (The Vile), the company has established a presence within the genre, supporting films that operate across both Hollywood and regional markets.
