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The Lair of the White Worm

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5.9/10 • 265

1988-09-211h 33m

HorrorComedy

Some legends really bite.

When an archaeologist uncovers a strange skull in a foreign land, the residents of a nearby town begin to disappear, leading to further inexplicable occurrences.

Directors
Ken Russell
Editors
Peter Davies

Top Billed Cast

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  1. Amanda Donohoe

    Amanda Donohoe

    Lady Sylvia Marsh

  2. Hugh Grant

    Hugh Grant

    Lord James D'Ampton

  3. Catherine Oxenberg

    Catherine Oxenberg

    Eve Trent

  4. Peter Capaldi

    Peter Capaldi

    Angus Flint

  5. Sammi Davis

    Sammi Davis

    Mary Trent

  6. Stratford Johns

    Stratford Johns

    Peters

  7. Paul Brooke

    Paul Brooke

    P.C. Erny

  8. Imogen Claire

    Imogen Claire

    Dorothy Trent

  9. Chris Pitt

    Chris Pitt

    Kevin

Reviews1

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Wuchak Avatar

Wuchak

Dec 22, 2018

6/10

Quirky, amusing, sometimes surreal horror about a snake cult in England Directed & written by Ken Russell and loosely based on Bram Stoker’s novel, “The Lair of the White Worm” (1988) chronicles events in England when a young archeologist (Peter Capaldi) uncovers a skull of some unknown beast near a bed & breakfast run by two sisters (Sammi Davis & Catherine Oxenberg). These three and Eve’s beau (Hugh Grant) soon stumble upon an ancient snake cult led by the eccentric Lady Sylvia Marsh (Amanda Donohoe), who dwells at a lavish estate nearby. The movie is a creative and entertaining creature feature reminiscent in tone & theme of “Squirm” (1976), but with Russell’s well-known offbeat excesses. The “creatures” are vampire-like snake people plus a gigantic serpent at the close, both of which recall the snake worshipers & giant serpents from “Conan the Barbarian” (1982). There are some iconic cinematic images, like Donohoe as the vampiric snake lady, not to mention a few well done horror scenes, like a snake woman who’s cut in half, but still wiggles with furious intent. The snake cult is diabolical in an anti-Christ way and I can see why some viewers might find the movie shocking and offensive, like the weird nun-raping flashback. Yet everything's so exaggerated and sometimes cheesy with a bit o' humor thrown in that the film can't be taken very seriously, which negates it from being shocking or disturbing. Fun in a horrific way? Yes. Disturbing? No. Also, keep in mind that horror villains/monsters are SUPPOSED to drip with ee-vil and be shocking. The question is, do they win or do the noble protagonists win? On the female front, the chief snake lady thinks she’s hotter than she really is as Donohoe amusingly hams it up. Meanwhile Catherine Oxenberg as Eve is a semi-highlight, particularly in the last act. The film runs 1 hour, 33 minutes and was shot entirely in England (Hertfordshire; Manifold Valley, Staffordshire; Peak District National Park; and Derbyshire). Thor's Cave in Manifold Valley is magnificent. GRADE: B-

Media

  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster
  • The Lair of the White Worm poster

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Status
Released
Original Language
English
Budget
$2,500,000.00
Revenue
$1,189,315.00
Keywords
virginbased on novel or bookvampiresnake charmerwormhuman sacrificesnake womanarchaeologistfolk horrorpagan cultsnake cult