Eric Roberts and Anne Heche in "Fatal Desire"
courtesy of Lifetime Television
"Fatal Desire" (Lifetime)

Nobody does sleaze as good as Anne Heche. She can turn on her trampy side and make the part of an amoral person a stunning performance. In the new Lifetime original movie, "Fatal Desire," she ratchets up the sleaze as high as it can go on television. Then she delivers a picture perfect portrait of a woman who is out only for herself. Eric Roberts co-stars in this film and he is suitably pathetic while being manipulated by Heche's character.

Based on a true story, the film opens in Atlantic City where poor schmoe Joe (Roberts) is looking for love in all the wrong places, namely the Internet. Divorced and living with his young son, Joe is fascinated with a woman who identifies herself as "sex kitten." She and he converse on line and have gotten friendly.

The woman is really a bored housewife named Tanya (Heche) living in Pittsburgh. She has a husband and a daughter but wants something more. She encourages Joe in his fantasies and eventually goes to Atlantic City to meet him. They begin an affair but it is not one of happy ever after. Instead it has deadly results.

Kathleen York also appears in the film as Joe's good friend Paula. She is in love with Joe and would do anything for him, but he is in lust with Tanya and can't focus on anyone else. Paula fears it will all end badly and it does.

You may recognize York as being the actress/singer who composed and performed the Oscar nominated song from "Crash" on this year's Academy Award show. She is talented in a lot of areas and is always interesting to watch 

Still hers is a supporting role to those of Heche and Roberts. They are the ones who dominate this story and make it achingly real. They scorch the screen with their emotions and chill the heart with their actions. It is a painful story of a doomed love affair gone wrong, and it has the impact it has because Heche is so good at being bad.

This is another wild ride from Lifetime television and is a more downbeat story than they usually present. It is one that will stay in your mind and will make you think twice when you hear someone speak of the "wonderful" people they have met on line. 

"Fatal Desire" airs on the Lifetime Channel, April 3 at 9PM.

 

 

 

 

 

©2006 Jackie K. Cooper

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