Horror Short Review: The Ghost That Wouldn’t Die (2025)

Released in 2023, Real Cool Time was a 25-minute horror short written and directed by Matthew Packman and starring Lanae Hyneman, Alice Shen, and Kara Gray. An excellent short that combined the spirit of punk, rock, and metal with horror. The kind of horror that builds and builds, oozing tension and atmosphere, and leaving you feeling despondent, but satisfied.

Read that review here.

Why am I talking about Real Cool Time in this review? It’s simple, the team behind it are back with The Ghost That Wouldn’t Die, the next short film in the ongoing Devin Crane series.

Written and directed by Matthew Packman, the short sees Lanae Hyneman reprising her role as Devin Crane. Alongside Kevin Roach, Landon Jones, Christopher McCarty, Joe Gilpatrick, Lacy Overton, and Kara Gray.

How do I bleed you? Just like a ghost – Mark Lanegan

Devin Crane, the vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter for Devin Crane and the Ragged Way, has an addiction. Which might seem par for the course for someone considered a bit of a rockstar, but this is different. Her addiction is far more deadly and it’s all getting too much for her. Especially as she’s under immense pressure to perform and being chewed up by an unforgiving industry.

It doesn’t help that she’s beholden to it as well, her manager having used money and clout to keep Devin’s crimes out of the papers and her out of jail.

Her fall from grace seems inevitable, and in a way, she seems to relish it. Maybe it will allow her to finally be free.

I didn’t love the idea of a sequel to Real Cool Time, as it felt very much complete. I especially didn’t want to see the mystery around the Devin Crane character ruined. Yet, having now seen The Ghost That Wouldn’t Die, I am so glad it exists. It is a fantastic extension of the story and character, created in artistic style with a cast and crew at the top of their game.

None more than Lanae Hyneman, who is fully realised as Devin Crane now. Embodying the exhausted rock star dealing with a demanding desire for something that could ruin not just her life and career, but the lives and careers of those around her. Yes, what she needs is a drug, but not in the ‘traditional’ sense. She is a host after all, and through short, horrifying visions, we get a more intriguing idea about what might be afflicting Devin.

We are passengers, watching her downfall from just over her shoulder. Her world is dull and grey, she sleepwalks her way through life barely paying attention to anything or anyone. All she’s thinking about is her next ‘fix’, and what it might cost her. It doesn’t make her likable, but by continuing to keep her issue vague, it’s easy to be sympathetic at least. I don’t know, I love her, but that might be as much to do with Lanae Hyneman’s outstanding portrayal.

There are so many times where the short takes the breath away. Matthew Packman has taken the unique visual and sonic aspects of Real Cool Time and transformed them into something very special here. To say it leaves an impression, is to underplay just how artistic it is.

I can’t wait to see what comes next.