The Lair of the White Worm

Director - Ken Russell (Altered States, Tommy)
Starring - Amanda Donohoe (Batman Beyond, Starship Troopers 3: Marauders), Hugh Grant (Cloud Atlas, The Pirates! Band of Misfits), and Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who, World War Z)
Release Date - 1988
Genre - Horror
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     A few years back an amazon.com link was floating around a horror collecting group on Facebook.  So many people were excited for the sudden price drop on the Liar of the White Worm DVD.  People were commenting on how this was a great deal and LotWW was a very underrated horror film.  It was a new one to me but once I saw that the DVD was just $3 I went ahead and ordered it if for nothing else just to add to my collection.  I've had it for some time gathering dust with no time to actually give it a spin but that changed when Vestron Video announced the release of the film on blu with special features not included on the DVD.  I reached out to them and they were kind enough to send a review copy my way.  Thank you Vestron!

     The film follows archeologist Angus Flint (Capaldi) who is conducting a dig where he unearths a skull to a creature not yet identified.  The site was once the home to a convent and Angus suspects that it may have ties to their fall.  That night he attends the party of Lord James D'Ampton who is celebrating his ancestors victory over the D'Ampton Worm.  After they meet they are tossed into a deadly world where the worm was never actually killed and a group of vampire like people worship the beast.  They must act fast to save their friends and the local population before they are food for the worm.
     I had an abvious interest in this film when I learned that it was directed by Ken Russell and starred Hugh Grant.  I can't recall Grant in a horror production and was curious to see how it would play out.  The film was not the movie I was expecting but it was still shockingly entertaining.  The acting in this one is fun but nothing that stands out.  The cast does a great job making their characters stand out but they don't really do anything to make them memorable.  The entire cast worked very well together and looked good doing which is all you can ask for.  The story for this one really got my attention.  A giant man eating worm, a cult that worshiped it, and snake like vampires is all I've ever asked for in a movie.  Actually, I didn't know I wanted a movie with these things in it until I watched it.  The story is very imaginative and very well written.  The story has great pacing and keeps the action and adventure going.  Finally, the film is full of practical and visual effects.  The practical effects look fucking fantastic.  It is films like these that makes me love 80s horror and what they brought to the genre.  The film also showcases some very dated visual effects that actually add to the nostalgia factor of the film instead of ruining it.  Overall, The Lair of the White Worm is a very underrated horror film from 1988.  Ken Russell did an amazing job and horror fans or doing themselves a great injustice by not watching this one.