Dir. Damian McCarthy · 2026 · about 107 min · Hulu in the US
Ohm Bauman (Adam Scott) is a traumatised American writer who travels to the Irish countryside to scatter his late parents' ashes. He checks into the Bilberry Woods Hotel, the place where they honeymooned, a remote building in the woods of County Cork. Locals have a story about it: a witch is said to be trapped in the honeymoon suite, and the room is not for guests. That is the first act, and this review stops there.
Critics agree on the craft. McCarthy, whose earlier films are Caveat and Oddity, is praised for atmosphere: the hotel's production design, Colm Hogan's cinematography, Joseph Bishara's score and a layered sound mix that does a lot of the frightening. Screen International says the film is indebted to 1930s and 1940s old dark house movies as much as to The Shining, which fits a story built around one creepy building and a small cast.
an exceptionally chilling horror film
Screen International
Scott gets most of the credit for the lead. The San Francisco Chronicle finds the character one-note and mostly irritable, but thinks that suits the film. Others point to the comic edge his background brings, and to supporting turns from the Irish cast, David Wilmot in particular. The pace is brisk, and the jump scares are described as well built rather than cheap.
The split is about novelty and tone. Discussing Film gives it three and a half stars out of five and finds it familiar and a little too fond of jump scares, closer to an emotional character piece about loss and guilt than an out-and-out terror machine. The San Francisco Chronicle notes it resembles McCarthy's earlier setups, a person alone in a creepy place, and suggests he may want a different kind of story next. Screen International, by contrast, treats the leaning on genre clichés as a deliberate and effective choice. Phantasmag goes furthest and calls it a masterpiece of indie horror. Reading across the reviews, the film is widely liked, and the reservations are about freshness, not execution.
Wikipedia's summary of the reception puts the film at 90 per cent positive on Rotten Tomatoes from 199 reviews, and 76 out of 100 on Metacritic from 33 critics. Newsweek calls it a popcorn horror film with a serious story, and the San Francisco Chronicle calls it one of the best horror films of the year so far. The same source puts the production at about $5 million and the worldwide box office at around $25 million, small numbers that explain why a contained, one-location story was the right shape for it.
Hokum looks like the pick for viewers who like a ghost story told with patience: a single location, a damaged lead, a legend the locals would rather not discuss and a sound design that reviewers keep praising. If you want a reinvention of the genre, the critics who liked it most still say it is working in familiar territory. If you dislike jump scares, the reviews suggest you will meet several. Headphones or a decent soundbar would suit a film whose sound design is one of its main selling points, though nothing here needs special kit.
Tap what applies. This is a reading of the reviews, not a prediction.
Pick one or more to see how the reviews line up.
The film opened in US cinemas on 1 May 2026 after premiering at SXSW in March, and arrived on Hulu in the US on 10 October 2026. Availability varies by country, so check your local listings.
Sources: Screen International, Newsweek, Discussing Film, Phantasmag, San Francisco Chronicle, Wikipedia for credits and dates, Dread Central for the streaming date.