Welcome to Arrow in the Head's The Best Horror Movie You Never Saw, which will be dedicated to highlighting horror films that, for one reason or another, don't get as much love as we think they should. We know plenty of you horror hounds out there will have seen many of the movies we pick, but there will be plenty of you who have not. This column is for all of you!
This week we take a look at Ken Russell's hilarious and mesmerizing LAIR OF THE WHITE WORM (WATCH IT HERE – OWN IT HERE), starring Hugh Grant, Peter Capaldi, Catherine Oxenberg and Amanda Donohoe!
THE STORY: An archeologist discovers the skull of a dragon-like creature on the property of the Trent sisters, which he presumes must be connected to the local legend of the d'Ampton worm, which allegedly existed in the area several hundred years ago. Not coincidentally, an enigmatic woman living nearby is revealed to be a murderous priestess who sacrifices virgins to the great beast which roams free underneath the village.
THE HISTORY: Director Ken Russell had a three-picture deal with Vestron Pictures and wanted to direct a prequel to his successful melodrama Women in Love. Vestron stated that if he wanted to get that picture made, he had to first deliver them a horror movie, inspired by the success of his previous film Gothic. Russell picked up the Bram Stoker novel Lair of the White Worm and evidently finished the script in just about four days (this according to executive producer Dan Ireland). Russell took the spine of the novel and expanded upon it, adding his flair for absurd humor and focusing the narrative on the villainess, played by Amanda Donohoe. Tilda Swinton was initially offered the role, but was apparently so displeased with the script that she didn't even return Russell's phone calls.
Russell has maintained that the film is a comedy more than a horror movie, and anyone who sees it will not have any trouble disagreeing with that opinion.
WHY IT'S GREAT: Many of Ken Russell's films have the uncanny effect of making you feel like you've taken drugs when you haven't, and perhaps none more so than THE LAIR OF THE WHITE WORM, a bizarre, funny trip into uncharted British horror territory. To be perfectly honest, the first time I saw this film I was not very impressed; its quirky tone was just a mystery to me. Having seen it several times in the past couple of years, I can say my initial reaction was completely misguided. Ken Russell's film is such a thoroughly unique and fascinating creation that even if you end up disliking – or even hating – it, you can't help but admit it's exists in a world of its own. (I would not blame you if you took a less than favorable opinion of the movie; it is surely not for everyone.)
What stands out more than anything is the film's ridiculous sense of humor. Russell clearly knows his subject matter is absurd, and he treats it accordingly. At one moment the film delivers a very dry British wit, the next it's full-on slapstick comedy. (Check out the Hugh Grant dream sequence for exquisite proof of this.) It's not that the plot isn't fascinating; indeed, Russell makes you buy in to all this poppycock about giant snakes and cults and such. It's that the film doesn't mind treating its topic with a wink. You can just about feel the film tipping a pint glass in your direction, eager for you to go along with it.
Why it's more than just a laugh is because of how damn hallucinatory it is. As mentioned, Russell had a knack for making movies that make you feel as if you've gone insane (see Altered States and/or Tommy), and Lair of the White Worm's many dream sequences are as disorienting as they are amusing. When someone has been injected with snake venom, they experience some horrifying visions, and it's hard to describe what it looks like other than to say it's like you're watching bits from a particularly fucked-up late 80s music video on MTV. A good drinking game would be to take a shot every time Russell shoves one of these psychedelic images in your face. Actually, just take a drink any time something utterly bonkers happens; you'll be sloshed before the halfway mark.
Also amusing is this cast: a young Hugh Grant brings his patented upper class charm and it works perfectly for a character whose haughty attitude never wavers, even in the face of a giant snake. Amanda Donohoe is wonderful as the evil priestess; she's clearly in on the joke and enjoying every minute of it. She treats it seriously enough, but how do you keep an entirely straight face when you're asked to pop out of a large wicker basket like a snake being charmed by a flute? You've also got Peter Capaldi, perhaps best known as the twelfth Doctor Who, playing the priggish archeologist who finds himself immersed in these fantastical events yet approaches them with impressive pragmatism. Overall, you have a very British cast involved in some very preposterous goings-on, which makes the film something of a farcical UK comedy in the setting of a Charles Band/Full Moon picture. How can you resist that?
BEST SCENE: There's just something about watching Hugh Grant slice a venom-possessed woman in two with a sword and then proceeding to carry on a very civilized conversation on the phone immediately after… This movie, I tell ya.
WHERE TO WATCH: Lair of the White Worm is available on Amazon Prime, YouTube, Vudu, Google Play and Blu-ray and DVD.
PARTING SHOT: This is such a "get together with friends and several six-packs" movie, I cannot stress it enough. You want slithery monsters, sexy seductresses, possessed snake-people and caustic British humor all mixed up in one package? Look no further.