The Lair of the White Worm

The Lair of the White Worm (1988) is a British horror-comedy directed by Ken Russell — watch it online on iFILM. An archaeologist digs up an enormous skull on the English countryside. Lady Sylvia, who lives in the manor next door, takes it. She worships an ancient serpent deity that demands virgin sacrifices. The locals start disappearing.

Russell adapted Bram Stoker's lesser-known novel as gleeful Gothic trash — deliberately absurd, loaded with phallic imagery and campy dread. Amanda Donohoe plays Lady Sylvia with a cold, reptilian composure that makes the film genuinely unsettling between the laughs. Hugh Grant and Peter Capaldi are both here in early roles, clearly enjoying how weird everything is. Stream The Lair of the White Worm (1988) on iFILM.