Release Date: January 31, 2017
Director: Ken Russell
MPAA Rating: R
Runtime: 93 Minutes
Purchase: Amazon
Released as part of the new Vestron Video Collector’s Series, Ken Russell’s cult classic The Lair of the White Worm has been digitally remastered and released on Blu-ray, marking another great entry in this awesome catalogue of releases from Lionsgate.
Having seen the box art many, many times while perusing my local Hollywood Video, I always wanted to check out this oddly named title but never pulled the trigger on it till now, and, boy, am I glad I did because this is a weird one.
The film is a loose adaptation of Bram Stoker’s last and unfinished novel by the same name in which an immortal snake woman sacrifices local virgins to a giant white snake in a small village in the English countryside.
Amanda Donohoe chews the scenery as the snake woman, Lady Sylvia Marsh, a sexy, thoroughly ’80s seductress whose wry wit and penchant for quoting Oscar Wilde makes her a delightfully fun villain who you don’t necessarily want to see bite it in the end.
Lady Marsh is going up against a group of young twenty-somethings who begin to uncover her dark ritual, one of whom is played by Hugh Grant, a role he has since regarded as an embarrassing moment in his career, but I would suggest it’s a much stronger performance than many of his later films.
Ken Russell developed the story for Lair of the White Worm in just four days, and in some regards it shows; but it’s still impressive nonetheless. Many plot elements feel rushed and border on being completely silly, but they somehow add to the cheesy enjoyment that I got out of the film. Seeing Peter Capaldi throw on a kilt and charm human snake people with bagpipes is priceless and amazing.
If you’ve checked out any of the previous five Vestron Collector’s Series releases, you’ll know that Lionsgate isn’t all about just throwing these things on Blu-ray to make a couple extra bucks. Time and care was clearly put into this – and all the releases so far – to deliver the highest-quality product possible for fans.
Because I haven’t seen any previous version of this film before, I can’t speak as to the increase in picture quality, however it looks pretty good. The package doesn’t contain any specifics on the restoration, but I think fans will be pleased with the outcome.
On the disc there are two audio commentary tracks, one featuring the late Ken Russell and another featuring his widow, Lisi Russell, and film historian Matthew Melia. There’s a 27-minute featurette on the effects work in the film, interviews with actress Sammi Davis and editor Peter Davies, the Trailers From Hell entry with producer Dan Ireland, theatrical trailers and a still gallery. This is a satisfying amount of bonus features that together add some always welcome insight into the making of the film.
If you have yet to see the comedic horror oddity that is The Lair of the White Worm, I would definitely recommend checking this release out, if only to refamiliarize yourself with the work of Ken Russell and to see Hugh Grant cut a snake person in half with a giant sword.
