There’s nothing as powerful as a good old-fashioned jump scare. Often, they can be used as a crutch for many less-skilled directors or a gimmick to distract from a weak script. But when done right, and when done just sparingly enough, they can turn a solid horror movie into one of the scariest cinematic experiences of the year. That is certainly the case with Hokum, Damian McCarthy’s bone-chilling ghost movie that was easily one of the best films to premiere at this year’s SXSW festival.
Hokum opens, unexpectedly, in the desert. A conquistador and his page boy are trudging through the harsh dunes searching for buried treasure when, just as they seemed to have reached their destination, the map gets stuck in a bottle. As the desperate conquistador contemplates murdering his companion to finally find this coveted treasure, we suddenly cut to author Ohm Bauman (Adam Scott) in his darkened, empty house, typing away. He’s writing the final chapters to his beloved “Conquistador Trilogy,” the novels that put him on the map. But as he finishes those final paragraphs, taking a swig of his nearly empty whiskey glass in celebration, he spots a figure on the staircase. He slowly points his lamp at the stairs, only to show… nothing.
