Angus Flint (a very young Peter Capaldi) is an archaeologist who is working at a dig on the site of a former convent. The dig is on the property of a bed and breakfast run by Eve and Mary Trent (Catherine Oxenberg and Sammi Davis). The land is part of an estate owned by the D’Ampton family. The last remaining heir to the estate is Lord James D’Ampton (Hugh Grant). Angus finds a few Roman coins and the skull of an unusual creature. He knows it is not a dinosaur, but he is unsure what it really is.
Later he finds a mosaic that depicts a creature the locals call the D’Ampton worm. Lord James’ family legend tells the story of how one of James’ ancestors slew a huge snake-like creature by it in half. The creature was the D’Ampton worm. Every year the estate has a party to commemorate the event.
A nearby estate, Temple House, is owned by Lady Sylvia Marsh (Amanda Donohoe). Sylvia hears about the skull that Angus found in his dig. She steals it. The unearthing of the skull and the finding the mosaic, results in strange things happening. The guys begin to believe that the convent was built atop a pagan temple that worshiped a snake god called Dionin. Dionin is the very same D’Ampton worm of legend.
Angus and James begin to believe that the legend of the D’Ampton worm or the White Worm is based in reality and the worm is still alive and is in nearby Stonerich cavern. Sylvia turns out to be a disciple of the worm and, when needed, sports snake fangs and either kills her prey or turns them into snake zombies. As an offering to Dionin she is preparing to give Mary to it as a living sacrifice.
“The Lair of the White Worm” was released in 1988 and was directed by Ken Russell. It is a horror fantasy film with black comedy elements and was based on a story by Iris writer Bram Stoker. The novel itself is based on the British legend of the Lambton Worm.
The skull that Angus finds was made from a cow skull that was enhanced by attaching sculpted sections to it. The mouth of the White Worm that was living in the tunnel was actually a painted Volkswagen Beetle hood.
This ended up being far more deceiving than I expected. It starts out as a standard horror movie. The longer it went on, the kinkier and stranger it got. The weirder it got, the higher the camp value got. It ended up being an enjoyable surprise. The highlight of the film, other than the VW W (Volks Wagon Worm) is Amanda Donohoe as Lady Sylvia Marsh. She is slinky and charming, but deadly and appears to be having a great time as an evil snake vamp.
Some scenes were shot in Thor’s Cave, AKA Thor’s House Cavern AKA Thyrsis’s Cave, a natural cavern in Manifold Valley in the Peak District National Park near Staffordshire, England.