SummaryWhen an archeologist uncovers a strange skull in foreign land, the residents of a nearby town begin to disappear, leading to further unexplainable occurrences.
SummaryWhen an archeologist uncovers a strange skull in foreign land, the residents of a nearby town begin to disappear, leading to further unexplainable occurrences.
Donohoe as the vampire seductress projects a beguiling sexuality that should suck the resistance out of all but the most cold-blooded critics. She is also hilarious, a virtue shared by everyone and everything in The Lair of the White Worm.
Director Ken Russell is at his kinky best in this horror story that is adult in its thrills, humor and sexuality. Figuring out who is the worm in the movie is quite easy. But the particulars of Russell's imagination are delightfully outrageous. [11 Nov 1988, p.A]
Roger Ebert saved his most savage paragraph ever written for this film, which isn't as good as my score indicates, but has its fans who are right about it. Did Ebert get up and go to the bathroom during the fantasy/dream sequences? They demonstrate a surrealist ethic that would make Salvador Dali himself jealous.
Based on one of the worst horror novels ever written (of the same name by Bram "Dracula" Stoker, no less), Ken Russell hits his stride with an adaptation that finds a perfect balance between desire and repulsion, dumb jokes and disturbing scares. A pre-famous Hugh Grant gives us a nice view of his range, while Amanda Donohoe gives us the last great female villain since Cruella DeVille. If you don't find the latter equal parts sinister and sexy, then you are probably dead. With marijuana legalization sweeping the nation, this film should rightfully claim its mantle as a cult classic (cough cough, looking at you ****...look at the colors!) Seriously (and I was being serious), if you liked Peter "Lord of the Rings" Jackson for his spectacular work in his zombie sendup "Braindead," stop reading this review and give this movie a shot.
It's great, succeeds at what it tries to do, a sensual, slightly lovecraftian adventure with a good direction and aesthetics, likeable characters. One for Hammer Horror fans, but it's so much more than that. A real treat.
Given a distinctly playful treatment by Russell, who crams some kind of phallic imagery into almost every frame, THE LAIR OF THE WHITE WORM is solid, campy fun--much more entertaining than any of the director's "serious" films. Russell (who also scripted) enjoys himself with all kinds of fetishistic images, from a naked Amanda Donohoe slithering around in green body paint, to a white bra- and panties-clad Catherine Oxenberg suspened over a pit as a sacrificial offering to the great white worm-snake--whose flickering tongue is, no doubt, firmly in his cheek.
Ken Russell's phallic farce starring Hugh Grant and Peter Capaldi is drearily sexist, accidentally absurd and undeniably a stinker. But its defiant disrespect for plot and taste win me over.
Say what you will about Ken Russell, his films are usually bonkers. His latest, Lair of the White Worm, will do nothing to alter his reputation as the champion of camp thrash, but at least it's a step or two -- if only short ones -- above such recent efforts as "Salome's Last Veil" and "Gothic."
This movie is fascinating, enjoyable and unique. It is also strange and cheesy and I can see why other would rate it as garbage. It is the kind of movie you have to watch as reviews cant grasp it entirely but I will do my best. It is said to be based on a book by legendary Bram Stoker with the same name but I did not read the book and even more did discover this fact only recently. They use also the legend of the Lambton Worm which is a folklore legend from the United Kingdom for set up. The story is set in modern times and stars Angus Flint who is an archaeology student in Durham Scotland. It starts when he discovers a skull at an excavation side that appears to belong to a giant unknown species of snake. He believes to have found the truth behind the legend of the Lambton Worm. He tells this the current lord of the Lambton estate who is a descendant of the hero who defeated the worm back then. There is also the mysterious Lady Sylvia who takes a lot of interest in this. Here I stop to avoid spoilers. Like I said the story is fascinating, cheesy, maybe in the so bad is good category but I could not turn it off as it was too entertaining. The actors work good enough but I must mention there are some cheesy scenes too which I cant blame them for. We have Hugh Grant as Lord D’Ampton. He works well and it is one of his first movies. The star is Amanda Donohoe as Lady Sylvia. She is incredible and a highlight. Then there is Peter Capaldi as Angus Flint. Today he is famous as “The Doctor” and here he does a convincing job. Catherine Oxenberg and Paul Brooke round up the cast. Again like I said a good performance with some cheesy moments. The special and practical effects are mixed. Some are really bad, some entertaining and some really good considering the time and budget. I must warn you that there are some disturbing images in this movie but those are not inserted for outrage or effects. Those are fitting into the story and narrative. Director Ken Russel is famous for this and a bit controversial. Overall this was a unique and fascinating experience. While I generally shy away from the phrase “Not for everyone” it is valid here.
The Lair of the White Worm is the kind of movie you usually say is so bad it's good, though I have to be honest about it and say it's really not that bad, it's just too campy and cartoonishly ridiculous at so many points that it's a little hard to dive into.I think that a more violent approach, though not necessarily serious, would have done wonders.
This movie is insane; the presentation, tone, and acting is all jacked beyond understanding. Felt like what should of been a cult classic but was too ****.