The Ghost That Wouldn't Die (2024) - Short Horror Film Review

I watch many films for review on this site, and many of those swiftly fade from memory. Morbid Colors was an alternative take on the traditional vampire story, blending punk ethics and a road-trip story. It was one of the rare films that did stick around in my mind. I was surprised when in 2023 a sequel emerged in the form of short horror Real Cool Time, which took the story in an interesting direction. That mini-sequel blew me away, and so hearing there was a new third film in the series, the twenty four minute long The Ghost That Wouldn't Die, I was expecting great things.

This third film again features Devin Crane (Lanae Hyneman) in a leading role. The woman, afflicted with an insatiable thirst for blood is on tour with her band to promote their new album. Devin has discovered recently that the aids she has put in place to control her violent urges are no longer working as they once did, and struggles to maintain a sense of normality as her life begins to fall apart as a result.

I didn't think this was quite as good as Real Cool Time, but this was still a darn good short that was a welcome return to the hellish existence of Devin. I thought it was a neat idea to have much of the film shown in black and white, and her being on tour surrounded by people was a large change from the isolated setting of the first short. Like The Addiction, there is a good contrast drawn between the need for blood and...well, addiction. Devin at her worst, with anti-social behaviour and going through the motions, was able to blend in with her appearing to be a stereotypical rockstar, rather than someone struggling to keep things together for more supernatural reasons. There are some good scenes featuring tour manager Leigh (Kevin Roach - Compression), and I also enjoyed the facial expressions of her band and support band, with much of this presented on screen dialogue free, aside from the morose narration of Devin, and a discordant atmospheric soundtrack.

Once again written and directed by Matthew Packman, with Jakob Bilinski (director of Compression) as director of photography/colourist, this was an effective and moody short that translated the struggles of Devin well onto the screen. I like that the lack of audio from the scenes playing give Devin a disjointed and far away feel. That even in a room packed with adoring fans she is separated living in her own head. It was wonderful to see Kara Gray once again reprising her role as Devin's sister Myca, with this very creepy looking figure seeming to be the personification of Devin's addiction. From start to finish the editing and style of shots here combined to make something that felt just that little bit special.

Having enjoyed Real Cool Time, I expected I would also like The Ghost That Wouldn't Die, and thankfully this was another great entry. As much as I liked Morbid Colors, it wasn't perfect, but it has been a nice surprise to see how much better these shorter sequels have been, with the quality of the filmmaking seemingly ever increasing.

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